Russia is importing gasoline from India to address a domestic fuel shortage, as Ukrainian strikes disrupt domestic refineries and crude exports shift toward Asian markets.
Record shipments from New Delhi
Over 60,000 metric tonnes of gasoline have been sent from India to Russia, as first reported by Reuters on Wednesday, 1 July. According to the report, at least two tankers carrying 30,000 and 40,000 tonnes of gasoline, respectively, are currently being transmitted from New Delhi.
Targeted attacks on infrastructure
The shortage stems largely from a series of targeted attacks on Russian oil infrastructure. Last month, the Ukrainian defence ministry revealed that 11 Russian oil refineries, alongside fuel logistics facilities, had been hit by Ukrainian forces. Just yesterday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that Ukraine had made its second strike on an oil refinery in Ufa.
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These disruptions have hit the Russian refining sector hard. An analysis by the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Centre notes that Russia normally has a refining capability of 327 million tonnes of oil annually, yet Ukrainian attacks had halted up to 38% of that capacity by 2025. Recent strikes have ensured the major Moscow oil refinery won’t be in production for at least the next six months.
Domestic strain and prices
Russian gasoline prices jumped 9.8% in the last six months, with a record single-week climb of 3% in June. The impact has been particularly stark in the disputed region of Crimea, where Russian President Vladimir Putin openly admitted during a televised interview on Sunday that only a “few days’ supply” was left in the territory.
Demand for fuel is particularly high in summer due to increased travel, with Russian gasoline consumption surpassing a daily level of 110,000 tonnes during these months. “We are currently seeing a certain shortage,” Putin said, noting that “it’s not critical,” and expressing confidence that more petrol would cross Russian borders soon.
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Strategic pivot to Asia
Russia, home to the world’s largest gas reserves, is the second biggest producer of natural gas globally. Its supply is significant enough that the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022 – and the subsequent European sanctions – triggered a continent-wide energy crisis in Europe. By 2025, Russia’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports to Europe, formerly its largest export market for LNG, fell by 44%, with the European Union (EU) committing to cutting them completely by 2027.
This shift turned attention to oil, and Russia supplying discounted oil and gas to Asian markets. India is one of the biggest importers of oil globally, with imports of Russian oil reaching a record high at 2.70 million barrels per day last month. Russia is exporting oil that can’t currently be processed on Russian soil to India, and importing gasoline in return.
Russia and India’s ongoing energy partnership has drawn attention in recent months, particularly as India signed a free trade agreement (FTA) with the European Union (EU) early this year and is in talks for a trade deal with the US. This economic maneuvering is essential for the country as it handles a volatile global economy. [2] Arid Saudi Arabia looks to Africa’s breadbaskets