Russia may allow companies to temporarily produce gasoline and diesel with lower quality and allow lower quality imports, Kommersant daily newspaper said on Monday, as the country tries to ease the fuel crisis amid Ukraine’s attacks on its refineries.
The newspaper, citing a draft governmental document, said Russia may allow production of gasoline and diesel of the Euro-2 standard with higher sulphur content and which has been banned since 2013, for a year until July 2027, as well as allowing the imports.
Ukraine has intensified strikes on Russian energy infrastructure in the fifth year of the war, triggering widespread fuel shortages and price spikes as Kyiv tries to push Moscow to the negotiation table.
President Vladimir Putin acknowledged on Sunday at a meeting with government ministers and other officials that Ukrainian drone strikes had triggered fuel shortages in some regions, but said Russia was dealing with them.