Gasoline in Russia is being rationed from its western Baltic enclave of Kaliningrad to Vladivostok in the Far East. The nation that parades as an energy superpower cannot keep its own drivers on the road. In some regions, motorists are limited to 10-20 liters per visit — if they can find gasoline at all. In others, only diesel remains. Prices have soared as well. Wholesale gasoline has jumped over 50% since January, hitting record highs, while diesel costs have surged nearly 10% in just a month, making fuel increasingly unaffordable for ordinary Russians. Pavel Bazhenov, head of the Independent Fuel Union, said the measures were simply to help station owners “weather the difficult period of shortages” and prevent more closures — a fate that has already hit smaller operators.
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