Fuel shortage hit 20 regions of the Russian Federation, gasoline price reached historical maximum – foreign intelligence

Fuel shortages have affected at least 20 regions of Russia, including the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine. At the same time, the cost of petroleum products is rising across the country, UNN reports with reference to the Foreign Intelligence Service of Ukraine.

DetailsAccording to the St. Petersburg International Mercantile Exchange, on September 17, the price of AI-92 gasoline rose and exceeded 73.2 thousand rubles per ton, which became a historical maximum.

According to intelligence, the crisis is explained by a number of factors. First, since August 2, 13 oil refineries in the Russian Federation with a total capacity of 119.2 million tons per year have failed. As a result, the Ministry of Energy and oil companies were forced to revise the schedule of planned repairs of oil refineries to increase gasoline supplies to the domestic market.

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The deficit was also caused by the low level of reserves in retail chains: due to the high discount rate and expensive loans, regional gas station operators were unable to form reserves, which has already led to the closure of gas stations in the Belgorod and Vladimir regions.

A separate factor is the artificial restriction of supply by large state-owned companies – Rosneft, Lukoil, Gazprom Neft, Surgutneftegaz, and Tatneft. They regularly delay the shipment of contracted fuel, preferring their own gas stations. It is more economically profitable for companies to pay a 5% fine for non-fulfillment of exchange obligations than to send gasoline to the market.

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In the short term, particularly in the winter of 2025/2026, this will lead to a worsening of the socio-economic situation in the Russian Federation, an increase in dependence on fuel imports from Belarus, Kazakhstan, and China, as well as additional risks in logistics, primarily for the needs of the occupation army.

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RecallPresident of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that Russia was counting on a fuel crisis in Ukraine, but now it is facing a gasoline shortage itself. The head of state also noted Ukraine’s resilience in providing fuel despite Russian attacks and honored the memory of fallen oil and gas industry workers by presenting awards to their families and other employees.