The Russian government has voted a decree authorizing the production, import and sale of gasoline of environmental categories Euro-2, Euro-3 and Euro-4, Gazeta Ru reports. The permit will be valid until July 1, 2027. The sale of gasoline of the Euro-2 category was banned back in 2013, but Ukraine's strikes on oil refineries in Russia created a shortage of higher-quality fuels and Moscow was forced to resort to this measure.
Information about the quality of the fuel offered will be published at gas stations in the country so that drivers can make their own choice of what gasoline to fill. And now many motorists in Russia are complaining about the low quality of fuel, which damages more modern engines.
According to the Russian Ministry of Energy, the measure to allow low-quality fuels is temporary and is intended to deal with the shortage that has arisen.
Allowing the sale of fuels of lower environmental classes allows the use of oil without deep processing and the use of capacities that are not capable of refining higher-quality gasoline, experts note.
According to Reuters, due to regular attacks by the Ukrainian armed forces on Russian refineries, the production of automotive gasoline in Russia by the beginning of July 2026 has decreased to 65% of the average level of domestic consumption. And the production of diesel fuel has practically caught up with the volume of demand.