Russia has temporarily introduced a complete ban on the export of gasoline and aviation kerosene. President Vladimir Putin announced it at a meeting with members of the government and heads of the largest energy companies.
According to him, the restriction was adopted to stabilize the domestic market and ensure uninterrupted supplies of fuel to citizens, enterprises and socially significant organizations.
The authorities are considering extending a similar ban to the export of diesel fuel.
Vladimir Putin noted that Russian oil refineries are operating at maximum capacity, and some planned repairs have been postponed. According to forecasts, already in July the production of main types of fuel will exceed June figures.
The President also said that gasoline reserves in Russia amount to about 1.7 million tons, almost at the level of last year. Despite this, in some regions there are still queues at gas stations and shortages of certain brands of fuel. To monitor the situation, the government has formed a special headquarters operating around the clock.
Spokesman for the Russian President Dmitry Peskov said that the authorities are also negotiating with a number of countries about possible imports of petroleum products. According to him, this could be an additional measure to stabilize the market and reduce rush demand, if it is possible to agree on supplies at reasonable prices.
However, he did not specify which countries are being considered as potential suppliers.
Dmitry Peskov also noted that the situation on the fuel market is under constant control: specialized meetings are held daily, and a government working group headed by Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak deals with this issue on a daily basis.
For Kyrgyzstan, Russia’s decision is significant because the republic imports 90 percent of its petroleum products from Russia. At the same time, the Russian authorities did not report the extension of restrictions on fuel supplies to the EAEU countries, including Kyrgyzstan.
