A wave of Ukrainian strikes has caused Russia's oil refining volume to fall to its lowest level in over 21 years, deepening the domestic fuel crisis and further tightening the global market, Bloomberg reports, writes UNN.
Details
According to EA Analytics, Russia's average oil refining rate this month was 3.91 million barrels per day, the lowest level since March 2005. This is more than 1.4 million barrels per day below the average for last year, the data shows.
The drop in production has led to a ban on most diesel fuel exports until the end of July, in addition to restrictions on gasoline and aviation fuel supplies imposed earlier. The loss of diesel fuel from a key global supplier has driven prices to multi-year highs, as the market was already tightening due to supply disruptions in the Middle East.
Russia has classified its official statistics on the operation of oil refineries, making it difficult to independently assess the damage inflicted on the industry.
EA Analytics, a division of the consulting firm Energy Aspects Ltd., estimates refinery operations by monitoring the entire oil supply chain, from satellite tracking of oil fields and storage tanks to real-time cargo flows.
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Over the past 100 days, about 50 Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refining facilities have been recorded, affecting at least 24 of the 34 major refineries, mostly linked to the country's main oil producers, according to Bloomberg's calculations based on public statements from both countries.
"A barrage of Ukrainian strikes" has affected more than half of Russia's refining capacity since the beginning of May, according to a report by the International Energy Agency (IEA) published on Friday. The Paris-based agency estimates that Russian refineries processed 3.8 million barrels per day in June, down 1.6 million barrels per day from a year earlier.
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The attack on the Omsk refinery, which primarily serves the domestic market, has created additional pressure on supplies to Russian consumers. Several regions of the country — from Kaliningrad on the Baltic Sea to Russia's Pacific coast — report supply disruptions, hours-long queues at gas stations, and rapidly rising prices at the pump.
"There are problems and shortages, so we see queues and sometimes unstable operation of gas stations," Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak told local media last week. Novak, who oversees Russia's energy sector, holds meetings on the domestic fuel market almost daily.
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To mitigate the situation with "panic buying," some regions have introduced a temporary rationing system based on vehicle license plates. Authorities in the Novosibirsk region have recommended that companies reintroduce remote work to reduce fuel consumption.
Some Russians have also taken matters into their own hands: last month, Russia's Yandex search engine recorded over 17,000 searches for "how to make gasoline," reports The Bell. This is the highest figure since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Recall
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasized that Russia has lost its territorial advantage — the deep rear. The Head of State made this statement after Ukrainian drones struck an oil refinery in Siberia. This refers to the Omsk Oil Refinery, located more than 2,500 km in a straight line from the Ukrainian border.
The chief designer of Fire Point, Denys Shtilerman, said that during the attack on the Omsk refinery, a new modification of the Ukrainian long-range drone FP-1 was used. This refinery became the farthest target deep inside Russia to be hit by drones launched from Ukraine.
Currently, there is not a single major refinery left on the territory of Russia that has not been hit by Ukrainian strike UAVs.