THE Russia today banned them exports gasoline for six months from March 1 to keep prices stable amid rising demand and to allow the maintenance of refineries in the country that is the world's second largest oil exporter.
The news of the ban, which was first reported by the Russian news group RBC, was confirmed by the press representative of the Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak.
RBC, citing an unnamed source, wrote that Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin approved the ban following a proposal made by Novak in a letter dated February 21. A second source told Reuters the decision had been made, but the decree had not been issued.
“In order to offset the excess demand for petroleum products, it is necessary to take measures that will contribute to the stabilization of prices in the domestic market”Novak says in the proposal as reported by RBC.
The price of gasoline is a concern for motorists and farmers in Russia, the world's biggest grain exporter, ahead of presidential elections on March 15-17, while some Russian refineries have been hit by Ukrainian drone attacks the last months.
The armed forces of Russia and Ukraine are targeting energy infrastructure in a bid to disrupt the supply chain and damage their adversary's morale as they seek to gain the upper hand in this war, which – two years after it began – no end in sight anytime soon.
The exports of oil, petroleum products and natural gas, is, as APE-MPE reports, by far Russia's largest export product – a major source of revenue for its $1.9 trillion economy. dollars – and ensure Moscow a leading position on the global energy scene.
The Kremlin is working with Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest oil exporter, to keep prices high in the wider OPEC+ grouping that includes the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and key allies.
Russia has already voluntarily cut oil and fuel exports by 500,000 barrels per day in the first quarter as part of OPEC+ efforts to support prices.
In 2023, it exported 5.76 million tons of gasoline
The leading gasoline producers in Russia in 2023 they were Gazprom Neft's Omsk refinery, Lukoil's NORSI oil refinery in Nizhny Novgorod and Rosneft's Ryazan refinery.
Russia in 2023 produced 43.9 million tons of gasoline and exported about 5.76 million tons, i.e. approximately 13% of its production. The largest importers of Russian gasoline are mainly African countries, such as Nigeria, Libya, Tunisia and also the United Arab Emirates.
Russia last month cut gasoline exports to countries outside the Commonwealth of Independent States to offset emergency repairs at refineries amid fires and drone attacks.
The losses included the shutdown of a unit at NORSI, the country's fourth-largest refinery, located near the city of Nizhny Novgorod, about 430 kilometers (270 miles) east of Moscow, after a reported technical failure.
Last year Russia banned gasoline exports between September and November to deal with high domestic prices and shortages.
Currently the ban will not apply to member states of the Eurasian Economic Union, Mongolia, Uzbekistan and two Russian-backed breakaway regions of Georgia, the South Ossetia and Abkhazia.
Wholesale fuel prices in Russia have risen since the beginning of the year. According to February 26 prices on the St. Petersburg stock exchange (SPIMEX), the price of 92-octane gasoline rose 22% from January 1, while 95-octane gasoline rose 32%. Since the export ban was announced, the price of 92 octane gasoline has fallen by 3.3%.
95-octane gasoline in Russia costs about 62 cents on the dollar a liter, when in most Western European countries the price is more than $2.05.
Source: News Beast
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