Putin orders regulation of fuel oil prices and continuation of the ban on Russian exports

Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered the government to provide state funding to ensure a smooth heating season, including by imposing regulations on the prices of fuel oil for home heating in some regions, the Kremlin said on Thursday.

Russia has been facing a fuel shortage and rising prices in the past few months. Demand for fuel oil is increasing in the Arctic and other regions facing harsh winters.

The document published on the Kremlin’s website stated that the government would provide funds to Murmansk and other regions of the Arctic to prepare for the 2023-2024 heating season, and to “start regulating the prices of fuel oil designated for the heating season.”

Although Russia is one of the largest oil producers in the world, it has suffered from gasoline and diesel shortages and rising prices domestically in the past few months because high export prices have made it in the interest of refineries to sell their products abroad.

On September 21, Russia imposed a ban on fuel exports to combat high gasoline and diesel prices and fuel shortages during the harvest season. There is no time frame for lifting restrictions.

The Kremlin said on Thursday that there was no deadline for lifting the ban and that the restrictions would remain in place as long as they were needed.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov also told reporters that other measures to ensure the stability of the fuel market will be considered once the ban is lifted.