According to the National Farmer association, fuel for agricultural producers has risen in price by approximately 35% over the past two months. Stanislav Sankeyev, the association's Executive Director, told Rossiyskaya Gazeta that a difficult fuel situation is now observed across the entire country.
"For example, in the Volga and Central Federal Districts, our colleagues report that prices start from 87 roubles per litre, but diesel cannot be obtained immediately – the waiting period is from four days," he says.
Specifically, in Mari El, diesel is currently sold from 88 roubles per litre, in Ulyanovsk and Samara regions – 89 roubles per litre, and in Belgorod and Bryansk regions – about 90 roubles per litre.
For enterprises operating under high debt burdens and rising production costs, even such an increase becomes a sensitive factor.
Over the past two months, fuel for agricultural producers has risen by about a third. Moreover, diesel cannot always be obtained immediately.Small farms perceive the price rise most acutely. Large agri-holdings often have the ability to enter into long-term contracts, build up fuel reserves in advance, or benefit from more favourable purchasing terms. For farmers and medium-sized agricultural enterprises, room for manoeuvre is significantly constrained.
Moreover, the impact of rising fuel prices is not limited to additional costs for fieldwork. Diesel remains a key component of transport costs, so price increases also affect the logistics of agricultural products. The higher the cost of transporting raw materials and finished products, the greater the pressure on the entire production chain.
However, industry representatives are not inclined to dramatise the situation. Alexey Krasilnikov, Executive Director of the Potato Union, acknowledges the existence of fuel supply problems in certain regions but considers them solvable. If availability issues arise in one region, fuel is promptly delivered from neighbouring ones. Meanwhile, according to Krasilnikov, transport costs account for only about 5% of the cost structure, so even a noticeable rise in fuel prices does not necessarily lead to a significant increase in the price of vegetables and potatoes on the shop shelf. The current situation has a much more serious impact directly on producers.
Looking at price movements on the exchange, in the European part of Russia, quotations for diesel fuel (DF) – the main type of fuel used for agricultural work – have increased by 19% since the beginning of March, and by 17% in off-exchange transactions. But this is an average across the board; the European part of Russia is large, and agricultural enterprises, especially small and medium-sized ones, typically buy fuel from local oil depots rather than from major traders.
As Yuri Stankevich, Deputy Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Energy, noted in an interview with RG, the wholesale price increase may be higher than the dynamics of exchange indices. Not all fuel volumes are sold through the exchange – a significant portion is sold via off-exchange contracts, and the price for the end-user farmer includes logistics, storage, and traders' credit costs. With expectations of further price increases and reduced fuel supply, market participants may incorporate a "risk premium".
Spring field work traditionally creates a peak in diesel consumption. But overall, there is no fuel deficit in the country, experts are confident.The problem of price increases in the small wholesale market segment, which is not covered by St. Petersburg Exchange statistics, was already raised by the industry community during the petrol price surge last autumn. Moreover, the fact that compared to May last year, diesel fuel sales volumes on the exchange have dropped sharply – by 80% (from 1.1 million to 0.61 million tonnes) – is deeply concerning. This is despite the fact that there was one more day of fuel trading on the exchange in May this year.
According to Stankevich, the rise in wholesale fuel prices for farmers and local shortages are the result of a combination of several factors. First, seasonal demand and logistics play a role. Spring field work traditionally creates a peak in diesel consumption. In southern regions, the strain on infrastructure is higher than the national average: demand is concentrated in a short period, while logistical capacity (railways, oil depots, truck fleets) is limited. Even with sufficient overall production, local "bottlenecks" arise, leading to temporary shortages. Today, the situation is exacerbated by continuous attacks on oil refineries and storage infrastructure (oil depots and fuel storage facilities).
According to Rosstat, in April this year, the production of coke and petroleum products in the country decreased by 9.2% compared to the previous year, and by 11.3% compared to March. Statistics on fuel output by type are not available, and aggregate data for May have not yet been published. Energy expert Kirill Rodionov believes that the April decline is a continuation of the trend from the first quarter of 2026, when the volume of primary oil refining in the country fell by 1.6% year-on-year (to 64.1 million tonnes), and the output of petrol and diesel decreased by 4.8% (to 10.8 million tonnes) and 0.6% (to 21.4 million tonnes) respectively.
But overall, there is no fuel deficit in the country, experts are confident. We are talking about supply disruptions in some regions. As Sergey Frolov, Managing Partner at NEFT Research, notes, local shortages and price increases are linked to a physical fuel deficit in the southern regions caused by attacks on refineries, as well as to disrupted logistics as a result. The required volume of fuel can be purchased, but the problem is how to transport it to its destination intact.
A similar view is held by Sergey Tereshkin, General Director of Open Oil Market: unscheduled repairs at refineries are to blame, which have led to a frenzy in the market. Once the situation with refinery utilisation becomes clear, prices are likely to decline.
But, of course, one should not blame everything on the difficult situation in the fuel market. According to Dmitry Gusev, Deputy Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the Nadezhny Partner association and a member of the expert council of the Russian Petrol Stations contest, it is surprising that agricultural producers continue to complain every spring about rising fuel prices. The dynamics of fuel prices throughout the year are well known to everyone, especially to those whose business success depends on it. One could purchase fuel in advance, when prices are not breaking records. Hedge risks – arrange with some specialised agricultural bank to finance fuel purchases during the low season, in winter.
One could argue that only large agricultural enterprises can afford to purchase fuel in advance. Medium-sized companies and small farmers hardly have the technical and financial capabilities to build up reserves in advance. As for loans, even on preferential terms for large companies, a loan to purchase fuel would be a serious financial burden. On the other hand, after nearly 40 years of the private agricultural sector, its participants might have learned to prepare for the annual spring rise in diesel prices.
The Ministry of Energy declined to comment on RG's inquiry. The Ministry of Agriculture did not provide comments at the time of publication.
Source: RG.RU
