Russia’s Far East is grappling with acute fuel shortages after a new wave of Ukrainian drone strikes forced multiple refineries offline, squeezing supplies just as seasonal demand rises.
According to The Moscow Times, queues have formed at filling stations in Khabarovsk and Primorsky regions, with some depots rationing gasoline as refiners halt operations for repairs. The outages come on top of cumulative damage that has sidelined nearly 13% of Russia’s refining capacity in recent months.
Ukrainian outlets including NV.ua reported that Moscow has extended limits on refined product exports in a bid to stabilize domestic availability, while retail fuel prices are already moving higher. Russian media confirmed that at least seven refineries have been targeted over the past three weeks, underscoring the scale of disruption.
Energy analysts note that while Russia has been able to maintain crude oil exports by rerouting flows, refined products are more difficult to substitute, especially in remote regions reliant on local output. Attacks in Saratov, Ryazan, Samara, and Volgograd, as well as Rosneft’s facilities in Siberia, have hit gasoline and diesel supplies harder than crude.
The implications extend beyond domestic markets. Russia’s refined product exports fell sharply in July following refinery outages, tightening diesel availability in Europe and Asia. With BP’s new discovery off Brazil and ExxonMobil’s ramp-up in Guyana set to add crude volumes globally, the mismatch between crude availability and refined product shortages highlights the vulnerabilities of Russia’s fuel system under sustained drone pressure.
While The Moscow Times refers to 13% of Russia’s refining capacity offline, that figure refers to installed capacity taken out by strikes. Reuters reporting earlier this week put the figure at 11% of national refining capacity offline, reflecting around 30 million tonnes/year equivalent and referring to throughput/output figures rather than installed nameplate capacity.
By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com
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