Russia imported its first recorded shipment of gasoline from Turkey in late July, relying on a sanction-listed shadow fleet tanker to deliver 200,000 barrels as domestic shortages mount. Driven by relentless Ukrainian drone strikes that have crippled oil processing, Moscow is turning to unusual foreign fuel suppliers including India, Belarus, and Kazakhstan.
Refinery Attacks and the Domestic Fuel Shortage
Supplies of gasoline and diesel from Belarus to Russia hit a new monthly record in July amid severe fuel shortages driven by unplanned outages at Russian oil refineries following months of relentless Ukrainian drone strikes, according to two industry sources and Reuters calculations. Russian gasoline output had fallen early in July to a level equivalent to only around 65% of the seasonal average consumption, while diesel production had dropped to roughly the level of domestic demand. Kyiv carried out a campaign aimed at weakening key elements of the Russian military machine, leaving current crude-processing rates about a third below seasonal expectations according to industry data.
Amid rising wholesale and retail fuel prices, the Russian government introduced a ban on diesel exports, while allowing exemptions for previously concluded contracts and shipments under intergovernmental agreements. Similar export restrictions on gasoline and jet fuel were already in place. In April, Moscow announced a complete ban on gasoline and diesel exports to prioritize its own consumers.
The Shadow Fleet and International Supply Routes
To plug the gap, Moscow turned outward. For the first time, Russia has purchased a shipment of gasoline from Turkey, analytics firm S&P Global Commodities at Sea (CAS) reports. A batch of 200,000 barrels will be delivered by the tanker Wendrix (IMO: 9299886), which departed from the port of Mersin on Turkey’s Mediterranean coast. According to data from Starboard Maritime Intelligence, the Wendrix left Mersin on July 31 and as of Aug. 23 is in the Gulf of Finland, reportedly heading for the Primorsk marine oil terminal in Leningrad Region. The gasoline’s manufacturer is unknown.
The tanker, which sails under the flag of Equatorial Guinea, is part of the “shadow fleet.” The Wendrix (formerly known as the Jasper) is on the sanctions lists of the EU, the United Kingdom, Ukraine, and Switzerland. The delivery marks the fifth known gasoline shipment to Russia since the start of July. According to CAS and Kpler data, Russia has already received three tankers carrying gasoline originally loaded at a refinery in Vadinar, India, and delivered to Russia after transshipment in Egypt. Another batch came from Morocco (a country that has no operational oil refineries). Analysts estimate the total volume of seaborne gasoline deliveries to Russia during this period at more than 1 million barrels.
Nayara Energy Ltd., an Indian oil refining company backed by Russia’s largest oil producer, Rosneft, was revealed to be the source of fuel that traveled aboard Russian-linked tankers through Egypt. Nayara, sanctioned by the European Union last July, transferred a 42,000-metric-ton gasoline cargo from India’s Vadinar to a transfer point at Damietta Port in Egypt before the vessel departed for Russia, concluding its drawn-out journey. Data compiled by Bloomberg reveals that more fuel may be on its way to Russia, as two tankers left Vadinar on July 6 and 13 before making transfers at Damietta. Sumit Ritolia, lead analyst at Kpler, told Bloomberg that imports from farther countries like India underline the severity of the current domestic gasoline imbalance.
Belarusian Supplies
Gasoline shipments from Belarus to Russia by rail rose last month from June to 212,000 metric tons (a 13% increase), while diesel deliveries doubled to 162,000 tons. Jet fuel deliveries from Belarus to Russia totalled about 13,100 tons in July, down from 16,000 tons in June. Belarus supplies fuel to Russia from its two refineries, which process Russian oil and have a combined capacity of 24 million tons per year, or 480,000 barrels per day. Overall, gasoline shipments by rail from Belarus to Russia in the first seven months of the year surged 25-fold from the same period of 2025 to nearly 665,000 tons, while diesel deliveries increased almost sevenfold to 418,000 tons. According to industry sources, Russia also began importing gasoline from India, Kazakhstan, and Morocco.
Global Crude Trade Shifts and Regional Risks
While exporting its own crude abroad to keep refineries running where possible, India’s dependence on Russian crude continued to deepen in July despite fresh geopolitical disruptions stretching from Russia to the Middle East, with Indian refiners continuing to favour Russian barrels over alternative supplies. According to data shared by trade intelligence firm Kpler with ThePrint, India imported a record 2.8 million barrels per day (mbpd) of Russian crude in July, surpassing the previous high of around 2.7 mbpd recorded in June. Russian crude accounted for nearly 55 percent of India’s total crude imports of around 5 mbpd in July 2026, further cementing Moscow’s position as India’s largest oil supplier.
Natalia Katona, Abu Dhabi-based commodity analyst at Oilprice.com, told ThePrint: Indian refiners still prefer slightly cheaper Russian barrels to more expensive alternatives, particularly at a time when disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb are tightening the market for medium-sour crude.
Katona also stated that Russia’s refining system is unlikely to return to full capacity anytime soon as repairs from drone strikes remain incomplete and fresh attacks continue. According to energy analysts, the twin disruptions have made Russian crude even more attractive for Indian refiners facing repeated Ukrainian attacks on Russian refineries and export infrastructure, alongside renewed Houthi threats in the Red Sea creating fresh uncertainty over crude shipments from Saudi Arabia.
On Aug. 22, Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak told a United Russia congress that gasoline supplies to the domestic market are expected to increase. He said that several oil refineries have completed maintenance and resumed production. However, in order to cover the shortfall, Novak identified imports and the production of gasoline of environmental classes K2, K3 and K4 — which are of lower quality than the Euro-5 standard.
Russia’s fuel crisis, which began in May, saw another rise in intensity earlier this month. Between Aug. 10 and 15, at least six Russian regions reinstated or tightened restrictions on gasoline sales, and the Novosibirsk Region signed the country’s first agreement capping the retail markup on fuel. In July, officials declared that the crisis was easing — but a new wave of strikes on oil processing facilities, including the complete shutdown of the Orsk refinery, largely reversed that progress.
