Russia Increases Gasoline Purchases from Belarus 25-Fold
In July, Belarus increased rail deliveries of gasoline and diesel fuel to Russia to a new record amid a persistent shortage of petroleum products on the Russian market, Reuters reports.
According to the agency, in July, rail deliveries of gasoline from Belarusian refineries to the Russian domestic market increased by 13% on a daily basis compared to the previous month to approximately 212,000 tons, while diesel fuel shipments doubled to approximately 162,000 tons.
Last month, Belarusian refineries shipped approximately 13,100 tons of jet fuel to the Russian market, compared to 16,000 tons in June, traders reported. In the first seven months of this year, gasoline rail shipments from Belarusian refineries to the Russian market increased 25-fold to 665,000 tons; diesel fuel shipments increased 6.5-fold to 418,000 tons, according to Reuters sources.
Russian refineries reduced production as a result of drone attacks: by early July, gasoline output had fallen to 65% of average consumption, while diesel fuel output had fallen almost to domestic consumption levels.
As a result, Russian authorities imposed a ban on diesel fuel exports for producers, subsequently extending it until August 31, and also announced plans to begin importing motor fuels.
Belarus, which has two refineries with a combined nominal refining capacity of 24 million tons per year, has stated its readiness to partially compensate for the lost capacity of Russian refineries due to drone attacks. In the fall of 2025, the Belarusian state news agency BelTA reported that two of the country’s oil refineries, Novopolotsk and Mozyr, had begun processing toll-provided oil from the Russian Federation, and the petroleum products produced from it would be supplied to the Russian market and also exported to other countries.