Russian Energy Ministry ordered to draft resolution to ban gasoline exports as of April 1
MOSCOW. March 30 (Interfax) - Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak ordered the Energy Ministry to draft a resolution to ban gasoline exports as of April 1 in order to stabilize prices and prioritize supplies for the domestic market, the Russian government's press service reported.
The order was issued following a meeting Novak held on the situation on the domestic fuel market with representatives of the Energy Ministry, Federal Antimonopoly Service, St. Petersburg commodity exchange and industry companies.
Novak said the turbulence on the world crude oil and oil products market caused by the crisis in the Middle East is leading to significant price fluctuations, although strong demand for Russian energy resources on foreign markets remains a positive factor.
Particular attention was devoted at the meeting to the objective, set by the Russian president, of preventing domestic fuel prices from rising faster than forecast. The Energy Ministry reported on the current situation on the domestic fuel market, saying that oil refining remains at the March 2025 level, which makes it possible to ensure stable supplies of oil products.
Industry companies confirmed that there are sufficient reserves of gasoline and diesel fuel and capacity utilization at oil refineries is running high to meet domestic demand.
It was decided to introduce the ban from April 1, but specific deadlines were not discussed, Interfax sources familiar with the outcomes of the meeting said earlier. One source believes the ban will be introduced for a period of up to three months. The current government resolution of January 31, 2026, provides for a ban until July 31 this year on the export of all types of gasoline, diesel fuel, marine fuel and other gas oils. At the same time, an exception was made for refineries that processed over 1 million tonnes of oil in 2022 (this category is called "producers"), including under intergovernmental agreements. A number of other exceptions were also made to the ban. Previously, the government changed the timing of bans and the categories of those to whom they applied through amendments to existing documents.
Russia needs to take measures as soon as possible to provide the domestic market with fuel amid the global energy crisis, Novak said at a meeting of the Energy Ministry on Wednesday. A day later, the head of Gazprom Neft , Alexander Dyukov, agreed that a ban on gasoline exports should be introduced for a period of 2-3 months. "Yes, such a ban is necessary for 2-3 months, because we see a significant increase in global prices not only for oil, but also for petroleum products. In order to prevent gasoline from being 'washed out' of the Russian market to external markets, where it can now be sold at high prices, such a ban is needed," Dyukov told journalists on the sidelines of the congress of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (RSPP) on Thursday.
