Gas stations in Russia’s Belgorod and Kursk regions begin restricting fuel sales amid wider caps in occupied Luhansk and Crimea
Rosneft gas stations across several districts of Russia’s Belgorod region have stopped filling jerrycans with AI-92 gasoline (the Russian equivalent of U.S. regular). Residents of the Korochansky, Alekseyevsky, and Yakovlevsky districts, among others, told the Telegram news channel Pepel about the restrictions.
Station workers said the restrictions reflect an internal Rosneft-wide ban on filling jerrycans. Residents also reported that stations had been limiting fills to less than a full tank.
Kursk locals described similar limits. Rosneft stations there are capping fills of AI-95 (the Russian equivalent of U.S. premium) at 20 liters per vehicle and refusing to fill jerrycans with AI-92.
Maxim Gusev, the Belgorod region’s minister of economic development and industry, confirmed that stations belonging to one of the networks had stopped filling jerrycans with fuel. He said the company imposed the restriction for security reasons and that it extended to other regions, though he did not say which. Gusev added that drivers could fill up with any fuel type without volume limits, and that jerrycan purchases remained available at other chains.
The self-proclaimed Luhansk People’s Republic has also imposed fuel sales restrictions. Citing increased demand, the Russia-appointed local authorities announced that sales of AI-92, AI-95, and diesel fuel would be capped at 20 liters per person.
Crimea has seen the worst of the shortages. Since May 31, Russian authorities there have introduced temporary restrictions on the sale of AI-95 and AI-92 gasoline. AI-95 requires coupons; AI-92 is available without them but is capped at 20 liters per vehicle. On June 1, the peninsula’s largest gas station chains halted the sale of fuel coupons.
The shortage was triggered by Ukrainian drone strikes on trucks along the highway connecting Crimea to Russia’s Rostov region — one of the main arteries for fuel deliveries to the peninsula.
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