Full Breakdown
Moscow Reimposes Fuel Purchase Limits Amid Shortages
8/20/2026, 11:31:16 AM
Core Event
In early August, major Moscow fuel retailers reinstated caps on gasoline sales. Gazprom Neft limited automated-station purchases to 40 liters per customer and to 60 liters at regular stations. Rosneft applied a 30-liter per-vehicle ceiling nationwide, while Tatneft set a 50-liter gasoline limit (60 liters for diesel). Lukoil also introduced restrictions in the capital and surrounding areas. Diesel sales remained largely unrestricted. Reuters witnesses reported long queues at several stations in the Moscow region.
Background & Context
Fuel shortages accelerated in May and spread across most Russian regions by July, a trend linked to Ukrainian drone attacks on Russian refineries, heightened seasonal demand, and unplanned refinery maintenance. In response, Russian authorities banned gasoline and diesel exports, eased fuel-quality requirements and began importing petroleum products to shore up domestic supplies.
Data & Statistics
- By mid-August, at least ten regions—including Orenburg, Lipetsk, Tver, Krasnodar, Primorsky and Krasnoyarsk—had reintroduced fuel-sale limits.
- Retail gasoline prices rose to as high as 120 rubles (? $1.50) per liter.
- Russian seaborne petroleum-product exports fell 33.3 % month-on-month in July and 54.7 % year-on-year to 3.93 million metric tons, according to Reuters data.
- S&P Global reported that 26 refineries were shut down, with seven still offline at the end of July and four more offline in August.
- EA Analytics noted crude-oil refining dropped to about 3.6 million barrels per day—the lowest level since May 2002—later recovering to just above 4 million barrels per day, roughly 30 % below the seasonal average, per Rystad analysts.
- Gasoline sales on the St. Petersburg International Mercantile Exchange declined about 20 % from the start of August compared with the second half of July.
Official Statements & Responses
President Vladimir Putin chaired a meeting on economic issues in Moscow on May 15, 2026, during which officials discussed measures to stabilize fuel supplies. Kremlin officials indicated that gasoline was being redirected from eastern Russia to the capital to mitigate the shortage, a move that has increased pressure on other regions already experiencing a second wave of scarcity.
Impact & Outlook
The re-imposed limits have intensified pressure on regional markets, with analysts warning of a possible peak in the fuel crisis in early September as Belarus’s Novopolotsk refinery enters scheduled maintenance. While diesel remains comparatively available, the ongoing constraints on gasoline underscore the broader vulnerability of Russia’s refining sector amid continued drone attacks and maintenance challenges.
