Page 155 - RusRPTJun24

9.1.1b Oil sector news
The oil sanctions policy is becoming “increasingly unenforceable,” the insurers organization at the heart of the global insurance industry said May 2.
● Production
A Ukrainian drone attacked the Gazprom refinery in Bashkiria on May 9, the longest distance covered in such an attack so far. According to calculations, the drone set a record, having covered at least 1,300 km—the distance from the territories controlled by Ukraine to the enterprise in Bashkiria. The SBU says that the drone traveled about 1,500 km.
Despite US warnings, Ukraine continues attacking Russian refineries, disrupting the export of oil products and increasing its price. As Politico writes, a wave of strikes by Ukrainian drones on oil refineries in the Russian Federation have led the world's largest oil country to begin to run out of fuel. As a result, diesel fuel prices in the aggressor state have risen sharply - by almost 10% over the last week. Gasoline prices also hit a six-month high, jumping more than 20% since the start of the year. In addition, Russia reduced its exports to an almost historic low, shipping a little more than 712,000 tons of diesel fuel and gasoil last week. Meanwhile, on the night of May 1, Ukrainian drones attacked the Ryazan Refinery, located 500 km from the Ukrainian border, deep inside Russia. Business Insider noted that, with these attacks, Ukraine risks alienating its most powerful ally, the US. At the same time, the current US aid will not enable Ukraine to win the war. Therefore, Ukraine is looking for ways to weaken Russia, which includes strikes on its energy infrastructure. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Latvia emphasized that Ukraine received weapons from some of its partners, allowing it to strike Russian territory.
Russia low on fuel after Ukrainian strikes on oil refineries. The cost of diesel went up almost 10% in the past week, while gasoline's prices hit a six-month high, going up more than 20% when compared to the start of the last year, Politico wrote, citing government data.
Labour shortages have also affected Russia’s oil and gas sector, reaching 40,000 people, Bloomberg estimates. Since the beginning of 2024, the number of vacancies in the sector has grown by 25%. As followed closely by bne IntelliNews, in the wake of the full-scale military invasion of Ukraine, mobilisation and the brain drain it has caused, Russia faces a mounting labour crisis as worker shortages grow and the labour market shows the lowest number of young workers since the early 1990s. In January 2024 47% of Russian industrial managers complained about the lack of qualified personnel,
155 RUSSIA Country Report June 2024 www.intellinews.com