Russia's grain harvest faces major disruption from diesel shortage - Ukrainian intel
Photo: A gas station in Russia with no fuel available (Getty Images)
Fuel shortage hits Russia's harvest campaign
The problem is most acute in regions where grain ripens earlier, including:
- Krasnodar Krai,
- Stavropol Krai,
- Rostov region.
Fuel shortages have also been reported in:
- Lipetsk region,
- Voronezh region,
- Tambov region,
- Sverdlovsk region,
- Yakutia,
- Bashkortostan.
Harvest campaign slows down
The pace of harvesting is nearly three times slower than in 2025, the statement said.
" As of July 1, only 1.3–1.5 million hectares had been threshed in Russia, compared to 4.2–4.6 million hectares on the same date in 2025. Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Patrushev publicly denied the existence of systemic problems with the harvest, but he did not provide any specific figures," Ukraine's intelligence service said.
The fuel crisis comes on top of a reduction in planted acreage. By early summer, the area sown with spring crops was down 11.3% year-on-year, while winter crop acreage had fallen by 7.4%.
Fuel shortage disrupts harvest collection
Fuel shortages caused by Ukrainian strikes are also creating a risk that farmers will miss critical agricultural deadlines.
"Once the grain ripens, there are only 7–10 days for harvesting; after that, the grain begins to shatter, and rain may prevent combine harvesters from even entering the fields," Ukraine's Foreign Intelligence Service said.
Representatives of the agricultural sector in Russia's Rostov region estimate potential crop losses of up to 15% due to missed harvesting deadlines.
Scramble for diesel
Diesel sales at Russian gas stations are being rationed, with purchases limited to 20-200 liters per customer. According to the Foreign Intelligence, buyers are also prohibited from filling fuel tanks, barrels, or other storage containers.
"By comparison, a single combine harvester consumes up to 300 liters of diesel per shift, so the established limits do not even cover a single full workday," the agency said.
In remote regions such as Yakutia, farmers reportedly have to travel 200-300 kilometers just to purchase 200 liters of fuel.
Small and medium-sized farms without their own fuel reserves or long-term contracts with refineries are on the verge of collapse, the Ukraine's Foreign Intelligence Service added.
Impact of the fuel crisis
The agency outlined several likely consequences of the fuel shortage for Russia's agricultural sector:
- Crop losses,
- Declining grain quality,
- Further erosion of profitability for small producers, for whom fuel accounts for roughly 20% of grain production costs.
Regions facing the highest risks are those with:
- Weak fuel infrastructure,
- Long distances between gas stations and farms,
- Limited fuel storage capacity.
Russia is increasingly turning to "gray" oil-product processing schemes amid the deepening fuel shortage. Ukraine's military intelligence agency (HUR) recently reported that one such scheme involves the Indian refinery company Nayara Energy.
Meanwhile, authorities in Russia's Kursk region are introducing a special system for purchasing gasoline, with new restrictions set to take effect on July 15.
