Strikes by Ukrainian drones have left Russian gas stations dry ahead of the vacation season
Systematic attacks by Ukrainian drones on the aggressor’s energy infrastructure have led to a critical fuel shortage in the Russian market.
Currently, demand for the popular AI-95 gasoline brand on exchanges is already ten times higher than the available supply.
The situation is a result of key facilities being taken offline due to “unscheduled repairs” following drone strikes.
Russia’s largest oil companies have halted the free sale of fuel, attempting to ensure at least their own networks of gas stations are supplied ahead of the summer peak in consumption.
In April and early May alone, the Ukrainian Armed Forces successfully struck six major facilities, including the Tuapse and Syzran refineries.
This has caused oil refining volumes in Russia to plummet to their lowest level since 2009—down to 4.69 million barrels per day.
Repair work on the attacked facilities will take at least a month, disrupting product shipment schedules by 2–4 weeks.
Market participants note that due to the constant attacks, they are unable to build up the necessary stockpiles in time for the vacation season.
Despite the Kremlin’s attempts to artificially suppress prices on the exchange, the real market is showing a sharp rise in costs.
Over-the-counter fuel volumes are already being sold at a 10% markup, yet even under these conditions, supply remains extremely limited.
Russia’s oil refining industry has fallen into a deep crisis, exacerbated by the inability to quickly restore imported equipment.
“Chaos” at strategic plants is systematically turning Russian gasoline into a scarce commodity even before the official start of summer.
The critical shortage of AI-95 in particular is creating additional tension among the civilian population, which traditionally uses this fuel for travel.
Currently, Russian media acknowledge that it is becoming nearly impossible to purchase “ninety-five” on the exchange due to the lack of actual supply.
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