Russia Considers Lifting Gasoline Export Ban

Russia’s energy ministry believes it could be possible to lift the gasoline export ban, currently in force until the end of the year, considering that domestic fuel prices are stable, Russian Energy Minister Sergey Tsivilyov said on Wednesday.

Russia could lift the export restrictions now because fuel prices and the fuel market in Russia are stable, the minister told reporters today, as quoted by Russian news agency Interfax.

In the middle of August, the Russian government said that Moscow is extending its ban on gasoline exports from October to the end of December 2024, as it seeks to keep domestic supply stable amid seasonal demand and scheduled repairs at refineries.

In the autumn of 2023, Russia banned exports of diesel and gasoline in an effort to stabilize domestic fuel prices in the face of soaring prices and shortages as crude oil rallied and the Russian ruble weakened. Prior to implementing the ban, Russia had raised mandatory supply volumes for motor gasoline and diesel fuel to deal with a supply crunch.

“Everything is stable with prices, the situation on the market is stable, so restrictions can be lifted – they were introduced in the first place to stabilize prices on the domestic market,” Tsivilyov was quoted as saying today.

At the end of September, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said that Russia could lift its ban on gasoline exports if a fuel surplus emerges on the domestic market.

“Exports are always permitted if there is a surplus of the product on the domestic market. For example, we do not have a ban on exporting diesel fuel, because there is a surplus, and it is sold on both the domestic market and for export,” Novak said in September.

Currently, the government is not concerned about the domestic supply situation as there are sufficient petroleum products on the exchange and stable prices at gas stations, Russia’s top oil official said at the time.

Source: Oilprice.com