Oil refinery capacity in Russia 1998-2018

In 2018, Russian oil refineries produced approximately 6.6 million barrels per day, remaining at the same level for two consecutive years. Over the past 20 years, the daily refinery capacity across the country increased by over one million barrels. The largest producer by oil refinery throughput was Rosneft, chaired by former German chancellor Gerhard Schroeder.

Refinery sector in Russia

Russia has the third largest refinery capacity worldwide, after the United States and China. Its crude distillation volumes saw an increase after 2011, when the Quadripartite Agreements between oil companies, the Federal Antimonopoly Service, Rostekhnadzor, and Rosstandart were signed. In compliance with those agreements, producers increased investment in modernization of refineries, which led to the rise of light products’ share in the total refining output and the refining depth growth.

Challenges to refineries’ growth

Concerns about the future of the global refinery industry stem from the decreasing oil demand forecasted in OECD countries. While a decline in consumption was not expected in Russia, the country’s oil companies faced the effects of a tax maneuver, which aimed at reducing the export duty on oil to zero by 2024 while increasing the mineral extraction tax.