The Russians aren’t even in the same galaxy, technically or financially, when it comes to pulling off anything serious in Antarctica. Just imagine the logistics—every bolt, every barrel, every bite of food has to be dragged across a frozen hellscape at the end of the world, all while battling weather that eats equipment for breakfast. The supply chain alone would give a Pentagon quartermaster a nervous breakdown. By comparison, U.S. shale looks like a lemonade stand on a summer afternoon—cheap, fast, and downright cozy. Developing oil anywhere else on Earth is a bargain by contrast. What Russia’s doing is the usual geopolitical pantomime: stir the pot, make a lot of noise, and hope nobody notices they can’t even keep their own drilling rigs from rusting into the tundra. Nothing to see here but a frosty PR stunt.
https://www.financian.com/russias-antarctic-oil-discovery-sparks-global-tensions-and-treaty-fears