The government expects a surplus of gasoline on the market as early as September

The completion of repairs at refineries will make it possible to create a steady surplus of gasoline volumes on the domestic Russian market starting in September, and accumulate balances in case of force majeure. This information was voiced at a meeting with Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak on August 25, a source told Izvestia.

We went to the price: why the exchange value of the AI-95 in Primorye soared by a third

The fuel crisis in the Far East has worsened due to a lack of processing capacity and expensive logistics.

According to him, the monthly production will amount to 3.4 million tons. The average monthly gasoline consumption in the country this year is 3.18 million tons, said Ekaterina Kosareva, Managing Partner of VMT Consult.

According to another Izvestia interlocutor, it was noted at the meeting that Gazprom had restored the plant in Astrakhan, where diesel production would begin on August 30 and gasoline on September 7. According to a source familiar with the meeting, Alexander Novak instructed the regions to "strengthen explanatory work with the population in order to remove the hype."

Following the meeting, the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) was instructed to verify the validity of setting retail prices by independent gas stations in the Far East. The most acute situation is in Primorsky Krai, where the difference between the prices of the Independent Oil Company (NOC, the company also owns the Khabarovsk Refinery) and independent gas stations reaches 20 rubles per liter.

Currently, according to Izvestia's interlocutor, the NOC is maximizing the volume of supplies to the region — more than 120 additional fuel tankers daily. In his opinion, the high demand for gasoline in Russia at the meeting was explained by an increase in tourist traffic and rumors of fuel shortages.

"As a result, there are cases when private traders fill up to 300 liters at a time, pouring them into both tanks and cans," the source notes.

Nevertheless, according to him, the situation in Crimea has stabilized. The daily consumption is 57-60 tanks. The day before, 63 tankers arrived on the peninsula, and at least 500 more are on the way.

Read more in the exclusive Izvestia article:

Tank view: the government expects a gasoline surplus in September