‘The country could run out of bread.’ The Russian State Duma has alleged that the scale of the fuel crisis is being concealed
The chair of a State Duma committee has stated that the Russian authorities are concealing the scale of the fuel crisis that has arisen following the strikes on oil refineries, according to TMT.
Almost a third of Russian oil refineries have been put out of action, yet relevant government officials are not introducing emergency measures in response to the situation.
She stated that concealing the problem is dangerous, particularly in the run-up to the harvest. Ostarina emphasised that the country could face serious consequences due to the fuel shortage.
Against the backdrop of the fuel crisis, farmers in Russia’s southern regions have begun to complain about a shortage of diesel and a sharp rise in prices ahead of the start of the harvest.
Food producers have also warned retail chains of possible delays in goods deliveries due to the fuel shortage. According to INFOLine, signs of a shortage of essential goods have already appeared in some regions, particularly perishable products such as meat, milk and eggs.
INFOLine founder Ivan Fedyakov noted that the situation is not yet critical, as retailers still have stocks to last several weeks or months. At the same time, he warned that should the fuel shortage persist, the situation could deteriorate significantly.
In May, Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries intensified. During this period, 16 facilities were targeted. Against this backdrop, oil refining in Central Russia has effectively ground to a halt, and refinery utilisation has fallen to its lowest level since 2009.
According to Reuters, petrol production in Russia fell by 25% in June to 85,000 tonnes per day, whilst summer consumption stood at 110,000 tonnes per day.
Restrictions on fuel sales were officially introduced in more than 40 regions of Russia, including the occupied territories of Ukraine. At the same time, reports of supply disruptions and empty or closed petrol stations were coming in from 85 regions.
Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak had previously stated that there was sufficient fuel in the country and that the disruptions were due to panic buying. According to him, demand for petrol and diesel has risen by 20–30 per cent, and the market needs time to reorganise its logistics.
Vladimir Putin also acknowledged that strikes on Russian infrastructure are causing problems and leading to a certain fuel shortage. At the same time, he stated that damaged facilities are being repaired quickly, and that to stabilise the situation it is necessary to speed up repairs, strengthen infrastructure protection and increase petrol imports.
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