Central Asia feels the pinch of Russia's fuel crunch

MOSCOW, July 13 (Reuters) - Fuel shortages in Russia, triggered by Ukrainian drone attacks on its refineries, have reached Central Asian countries, which are dependent on supplies from Russia, traders and fuel market participants said.

According to the sources, jet fuel exports by rail to Central Asia and Afghanistan slumped by over 92% in June from May to just 3,800 metric tons, while supplies of gasoline dropped by 34% to 99,300 tons.

Nevertheless, diesel exports rose in June to 237,700 tons from 167,500 tons in May, traders said. 

Despite the wider drop in June, Russian fuel exports to Central Asia and Afghanistan rose by 7% in the first half of 2026 from a year ago to 3.82 million tons. Last year, Russian fuel exports to the region rose by 19%.

Russian oil major Rosneft accounted for almost half of the gasoline supplies. Other suppliers include Gazpromneftekhim Salavat and Gazprom Neft. 

Ukraine has stepped up attacks on Russia's energy infrastructure, including oil refineries, in an attempt to undermine Moscow's war efforts. 

A decline in oil refining resulted in a fuel crunch across Russia, with long queues forming at the filling stations, while gasoline and diesel prices significantly increased.

Tajikistan's energy minister said last week that the country had around 60 days' worth of fuel reserves and was in talks with neighbours to guarantee future supplies. Kyrgyzstan also asked neighbours for help with fuel supplies earlier this month.

Russia has introduced a ban on exports of gasoline, jet fuel and diesel, excluding supplies under inter-governmental deals.

(Reporting by Reuters, editing by Andrei Khalip)