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Russia’s fuel crisis is deepening, with petrol and diesel reportedly available at only 28.1% of filling stations nationwide, according to data from the
GdeBENZ monitoring platform. The figure, recorded on August 16, was down sharply from 41% a week earlier, indicating that the second wave of Russia’s fuel shortages has become significantly more severe. The impact is now being felt in Moscow, where fuel purchase restrictions have returned and motorists have reported long queues at petrol stations. Reuters reported that some queues stretched for considerable distances, while several stations either limited sales or ran out of petrol altogether.
Russia’s Second Fuel Crisis Wave
The latest shortages come after Russia appeared to bring its first fuel crisis under control towards the end of July. That earlier shortage had prompted restrictions in multiple regions, but supply conditions temporarily improved before deteriorating again in August.
The renewed crisis has been reported across several regions, with authorities reintroducing restrictions on fuel sales. According to data cited by Anadolu Agency, availability fell from 41% on August 9 to 28.1% on August 16, with shortages particularly evident in parts of southern Russia, the Volga region and central areas.
The deterioration is being driven by several factors rather than a single cause. Ukrainian drone attacks have repeatedly targeted Russian oil infrastructure, while refinery shutdowns, seasonal summer demand and difficulties moving fuel between regions have compounded the pressure on domestic supplies.
Ukraine’s Drone Campaign Hits Russia’s Energy System
Ukraine has largely focused its long-range drone campaign on Russia’s energy infrastructure, particularly oil refineries and related facilities. The strategy is designed to impose costs well beyond the battlefield by disrupting the production and distribution systems that support Russia’s economy and war effort.
Repeated attacks have forced Russian refineries to operate under sustained pressure, while damaged or temporarily unavailable facilities reduce the amount of crude that can be processed into finished petrol and diesel. The effect is particularly significant during periods of high domestic demand, when even relatively small disruptions can translate into shortages at individual filling stations.
The latest crisis therefore demonstrates a different dimension of Ukraine’s long-range strike campaign. Rather than simply destroying military targets, attacks on energy infrastructure can create cascading effects across transportation, logistics, industry and household consumption.
Moscow Brings Back Fuel Rationing
The shortages have now forced major Russian fuel retailers to reintroduce sales restrictions in the capital. Gazprom Neft introduced limits on petrol purchases, while Tatneft also imposed caps on the amount of petrol and diesel customers could purchase.
Reuters reported that Gazprom Neft was limiting petrol purchases at some stations, while Tatneft had introduced a 50-litre limit for petrol and 60 litres for diesel. Rosneft also introduced a 30-litre petrol limit per vehicle in parts of its network.
The reappearance of restrictions in Moscow is particularly significant because the capital has considerably greater access to transportation and distribution networks than many remote Russian regions. The return of queues in the capital suggests that the shortage is no longer confined to Russia’s peripheral markets.
Russia Turns To Imports To Plug The Gap
Moscow has responded with a series of emergency measures designed to increase domestic availability. Russia extended its temporary ban on petrol and diesel exports, while authorities also relaxed fuel-quality rules to allow the production and sale of lower-grade petrol.
The government has simultaneously turned to imports of petroleum products from countries including India and Morocco, while continuing supplies from traditional sources such as Belarus and Kazakhstan. For a country that has historically been a major exporter of refined petroleum products, the need to import fuel to stabilise its own domestic market underlines the pressure facing the refining sector.
However, imports cannot immediately solve every problem. Fuel still has to be transported across Russia's enormous territory, distributed to individual regions and delivered to filling stations. Logistics therefore become another vulnerability when multiple refineries and supply routes are simultaneously under pressure.
Moscow Faces A Growing Economic Problem
The Kremlin has attempted to present the situation as manageable, with Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak describing the domestic market as showing signs of stabilisation. But the reappearance of queues, rationing and regional shortages suggests that the underlying supply imbalance has not been resolved.
The Russian Federal Antimonopoly Service has also opened dozens of investigations and issued warnings to fuel-market participants amid concerns over pricing and supply. The intervention indicates that the Kremlin is attempting to manage not only physical shortages but also the economic consequences of rising fuel demand and constrained availability.
The deeper concern for Moscow is that the problem could persist if refinery disruptions continue. Export restrictions and emergency imports can redistribute available fuel, but they cannot instantly restore damaged refining capacity.
Ukraine’s Drone War Moves Beyond The Battlefield
The fuel crisis highlights how the character of the Russia-Ukraine war is changing. While frontline territorial movement remains relatively slow, long-range drone warfare is increasingly allowing Ukraine to strike critical infrastructure deep inside Russia and impose economic costs hundreds of kilometres from the battlefield.
The immediate consequence is not that Russia has “run out of petrol” nationwide. Rather, the available evidence points to a severe and uneven supply disruption, with only 28.1% of stations reporting petrol or diesel availability in the GdeBENZ dataset and major cities now experiencing queues and purchase restrictions.
For Kyiv, the strategic value of the campaign lies precisely in this cumulative pressure. If Russian refineries remain vulnerable, Moscow may be forced to divert resources towards protecting energy infrastructure, import additional fuel and manage domestic shortages while continuing to sustain its military campaign.
Russia's fuel pumps are therefore becoming another battlefield in the wider drone war — one where Ukraine does not need to destroy Russia's entire energy sector to create problems. It only needs to keep disrupting enough of the system, for long enough, to make the shortages impossible to ignore.
