Gas stations in St. Petersburg and the Leningrad region have begun rationing fuel sales, the local news outlet Bumaga reports.
Employees at Surgutneftegas stations in both areas told journalists that customers are limited to 50 liters per transaction.
Stations operated by the Kirishskaya Toplivno-Energeticheskaya Kompaniya (Kirishi Fuel and Energy Company) in the Leningrad region are selling fuel only to loyalty cardholders, who must obtain the cards separately.
The day before, the St. Petersburg-based news outlet Fontanka reported that Kirishiavtoservis stations had imposed a 50-liter-per-transaction limit and that Rosneft stations had set their cap at 95 liters.
The Surgutneftegas website states that its stations sell only fuel produced by the Kirishi refinery, known as Kinef — which shut down in early May after Ukrainian drone strikes. According to Bumaga, it has not resumed operations.
Fuel sales restrictions have also been reported in occupied Crimea, in the Belgorod and Kursk regions, and in Moscow and the surrounding region.
The fuel shortage began after a surge in Ukrainian drone strikes on oil refineries inside Russia. As Reuters reported in mid-May, nearly all major refineries in central Russia had been forced to halt or reduce production due to Ukrainian drone attacks.
St. Petersburg is hosting the International Economic Forum (SPIEF) from June 3 to 6, and President Putin is participating.
Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak, speaking at SPIEF, attributed the decline in the country’s oil production to “unplanned maintenance” at refineries. Prices at the pump, he said, are “rising at a rate no higher than inflation.”
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