Russia is importing almost 270,000 tonnes of refined fuels from Asia this month, an extraordinary reversal of tanker trade flows that highlights how repeated Ukrainian strikes on the country's refineries have left one of the world's largest energy producers short of fuel, with images of long queues at Russian petrol stations becoming commonplace.

Preliminary shipping data cited by Reuters shows that roughly a third of the August volume originated in India, while other cargoes were loaded through ship-to-ship transfers off South Korea and Malaysia. No comparable Asian shipments arrived in Russia during July.

The flows are the latest consequence of Ukraine's sustained campaign against Russia's downstream energy infrastructure. Kyiv began systematically targeting refineries with long-range drones in early 2024, and damaged processing units have repeatedly required weeks or months of repairs. Russia is normally a major exporter of refined petroleum products, but refinery shutdowns have triggered renewed fuel shortages across the country. Authorities in at least 10 regions tightened controls on fuel sales this month, and petrol has again disappeared from some filling stations around Moscow.

Moscow has responded with a series of measures aimed at keeping more fuel at home. From August 1, Russia imposed a temporary ban on exports of gasoline, diesel, marine fuel and gasoil, with the restrictions running through January 31 next year, although exemptions apply to some producer exports from September. The toolkit is familiar: Moscow banned gasoline exports for six months in October 2023 amid an earlier round of domestic shortages, and export controls have recurred since as a lever for stabilising the domestic market.

The tanker movements illustrate just how distorted Russia's energy trade has become. India has become one of the largest buyers of discounted Russian crude since the invasion of Ukraine, meaning Russian oil can now sail east to Asian refineries before some of the resulting petroleum products make the long voyage back toward Russia. At the same time, damage to Russian refineries has at points left Moscow with more crude available for export precisely because it cannot process it domestically.

The next milestones are already on the calendar: the September start of the producer exemptions, the question of whether Asia-to-Russia shipments continue into September as damaged refineries are repaired, and the export ban's scheduled expiry on January 31 — each an indicator of how Russia's domestic fuel balance is holding up.

The fuel crisis is back with a vengeance. Russians are brawling in queues at gas stations while the black market laughs at 150-200 rubles per liter. Moscow and big cities get first dibs, the regions get scraps and closed pumps. It's a deliberate shortage. Ukrainian strikes on… pic.twitter.com/26lLlyGWPz

— medoyid_ua (@LetsArmUKR) August 18, 2026

Source: Splash247