Russia will divert export oil to refineries amid fuel shortage concerns, Reuters says

Russia plans to reduce crude oil exports as it seeks to increase refining volumes in June amid concerns over fuel shortages.

Source: Reuters, citing its own sources

Details: Early reports indicate that oil shipments from the western ports of Primorsk, Ust-Luga and Novorossiysk could fall to 1.7 million barrels per day (bpd) in June, down from 2.5 million bpd in May.

The sources said the decline may be partly linked to lower oil production.

Russian oil production has been decreasing since the start of the year, Russia's Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said on Thursday, attributing the trend to "unplanned maintenance at refineries".

Russia plans to increase refining volumes after repairs to refineries damaged in Ukrainian attacks.

The country was forced to cut oil production in April due to attacks on ports and oil refineries, as well as the shutdown of the Druzhba pipeline.

The move comes amid seasonal growth in fuel demand and reported shortages in some regions. However, lower production means that additional crude for refining will have to be redirected from exports.

Reuters sources in the industry also said that no spot deals have been concluded for deliveries of West Siberian crude to the domestic market in June, as producers are focused on exports and cite a shortage of available crude this month.

Background: Ukraine's Special Operations Forces hit a junction of two Russian trunk oil pipelines in Russia's Volgograd Oblast in a series of drone strikes on the night of 7-8 June.

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