In Russia, due to diesel shortage, farmers are recommended to use heating fuel
Фото з відкритих джерел
Amid the worsening fuel crisis in Russia, caused in particular by Ukrainian drone strikes on oil refineries, the Russian Ministry of Agriculture has suggested that farmers use heating fuel and diesel with a high sulfur content for agricultural machinery.
This is reported by Russian media, in particular Kommersant.
According to a letter from Andrey Artikulov, director of the Department of Plant Production of the Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation, dated July 17, regional bodies of the agro-industrial complex were instructed to find out whether farmers are ready to purchase heating fuel and diesel fuel of Euro-2 and Euro-3 standards. The ministry noted that the possibility of producing such fuel was confirmed by the Russian Ministry of Energy.
At the same time, representatives of the agricultural sector warn that such fuel is only suitable for outdated Soviet-made equipment. Instead, modern imported tractors and combines require higher quality diesel fuel.
Kristina Romanovska, general director of the Lazarevskoe stud farm, said that using furnace fuel in modern engines can cause serious malfunctions. According to her, increasing the sulfur content from 0.2% to 1% almost halves the engine’s life, and the cost of repairs will significantly exceed any fuel savings.
According to the analytical company Kpler, in June, oil refining volumes in Russia fell to 4.1 million barrels per day, the lowest figure in recent years. One of the main reasons was the systematic strikes by Ukrainian drones on Russian oil refineries.
To stabilize the situation on the domestic market, the Russian government imposed restrictions on the export of diesel fuel on July 8. However, this did not help to completely solve the problem of providing for farmers. On July 17, Russian Agriculture Minister Oksana Lut admitted that the regions were still experiencing difficulties with the supply of diesel.
In particular, due to fuel shortages, the leadership of a number of Russian regions is asking the federal authorities to increase diesel fuel quotas, and in some regions, additional mechanisms for its distribution among agricultural enterprises are already being introduced.
It was previously reported that gasoline production in Russia has fallen to a level that covers only about 65% of seasonal demand after Ukrainian attacks on oil refining infrastructure. As a result, the Russian authorities were forced to take additional measures to stabilize fuel supplies and increase its imports.
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