Russian gasoline demand recovering but lower than 2019

Gasoline demand in Russia will continue to recover next month as Covid-19 restrictions ease, but it will remain below last year's levels, according to Russian energy ministry estimates.

Domestic gasoline demand dropped by 12pc on the year in March when Russia first imposed virus containment measures, followed by a 40pc year-on-year decline in April during the peak of the pandemic, and a 28pc year-on-year fall in May as restrictions began to be eased, according to head of the energy ministry's refining department Anton Rubtsov.

Gasoline consumption this month was down by 18pc on the year and is likely to be 5pc lower year-on-year in July, Rubtsov said today at the Argus Oil Products Market 2020 online conference, without providing figures. The demand recovery is uneven across the country, he said.

Even before the first coronavirus cases were confirmed in Russia, domestic gasoline demand was sluggish. Consumption in January and February was down by 9pc and 5pc, respectively, compared with a year earlier. Demand has been "stagnating" in recent years, Rubtsov said.

The lifting of lockdown measures has helped boost gasoline consumption in recent weeks, combined with the fact that Russia has yet to resume international flights and some people who used public transport before the pandemic are now opting to drive.

Russian gasoline production has exceeded consumption in every month of 2020 so far, even though refineries have taken more units offline than they initially planned, Rubtsov said.

By Anastasia Krasinskaya