Russia receives first batch of gasoline from India amid strikes on refineries – analysts

Russia has imported gasoline from India for the first time amid reduced oil refining and a fuel shortage caused by Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries. This is evidenced by data from the analytical company Kpler.

The first batch of gasoline was delivered to Russia on August 5. According to Bloomberg, the tanker Cyclone loaded about 42 thousand tons of fuel at the Indian refinery in Vadinar on June 18. In July, the cargo was transshipped onto the vessel Garnet near the Egyptian port of Damietta, after which the gasoline was delivered to Russia.

The supplier was the Indian company Nayara Energy, which is supported by Russia's largest oil company Rosneft. The Nayara refinery in Vadinar is capable of processing about 400 thousand barrels of oil per day.

Leading analyst at Kpler, Sumit Ritolia, noted that the appearance of Indian gasoline on the Russian market indicates a serious imbalance between domestic demand and supply. The long and complex delivery scheme also demonstrates how acute the fuel shortage in Russia is becoming.

New deliveries are also expected. At the beginning of July, the tanker Varg loaded almost 40 thousand tons of gasoline in Vadinar and likely transshipped it to another vessel off the coast of Egypt. Another batch of Indian fuel was transferred to the Russian tanker Talisman at the end of July.

Most of the vessels involved in the shipments are under European Union sanctions, and Garnet and Talisman are also under U.S. restrictions. Analysts believe that the area of the port of Damietta has turned into a transshipment hub for supplying Indian gasoline to Russia.

According to EA Analytics estimates, oil refining volumes in Russia in July amounted to about 3.6 million barrels per day - approximately a third less than the seasonal norm. Since then, Ukraine has intensified strikes on the Russian oil refining industry: at least five enterprises were attacked last week, and at least two more this week.

Due to fuel shortages, Russia, which traditionally was an exporter, has banned the export of gasoline and diesel fuel to increase supplies to the domestic market. At the same time, Moscow continues to import gasoline from Belarus and other neighboring countries.

Previously, the media reported that Russia began importing gasoline from India amid Ukraine's strikes.

Based on materials from: Bloomberg