The decision was taken at a meeting chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak on Sept. 14, Vedomosti reported, citing two people familiar with the outcome, and RBC, citing one source.
One of Vedomosti's sources said the move was driven by the need to secure fuel supplies for the domestic market. A representative of the Energy Ministry told the outlets that export restrictions are reviewed in light of conditions on the domestic petroleum products market, demand dynamics, production volumes and stock levels.
Vedomosti reported that analysts link the extension to the postponement of scheduled repairs at refineries to the autumn and to the need to replenish fuel stocks.
The ban on producers has been in force since the start of July. It was initially introduced through July 31, then extended to Sept. 1 and to Sept. 30. For traders and small refineries producing up to one million tons a year, restrictions have applied since late September 2025 and have already been extended through Jan. 31, 2027. Restrictions on jet fuel exports run through Nov. 30, 2026, while a general ban on gasoline exports is in place through Jan. 31, 2027.
In July, Novak said that attacks on fuel and energy infrastructure had damaged a number of refineries and temporarily reduced gasoline and diesel production. On Sept. 15, Reuters reported that three of Russia's six largest diesel producers had significantly cut output or halted operations entirely: the Kinef refinery in the Leningrad region is shut down, while Lukoil-Volgogradneftepererabotka and Lukoil-Nizhegorodnefteorgsintez are operating at roughly a quarter of capacity. The six plants account for about half of Russia's diesel production.
Citing traders' estimates, Reuters reported that Russian diesel exports in June totaled less than 1 million tons, compared with about 2.5 million tons a month a year earlier, when refineries were operating normally. According to the International Energy Agency, in the first eight months of 2026 strikes hit an average of one Russian refinery every three days.
On Sept. 13, U.S. President Donald Trump said he had urged Vladimir Zelensky to stop strikes on diesel fuel production in Russia because the shortage "harms the whole world." He later announced an energy truce between Ukraine and Russia.