15 June 2026
The fuel shortage, which has already affected 25 regions of Russia and caused problems refueling equipment ahead of the harvest season in southern Russia , has spread to the Irkutsk Region. Regional Legislative Assembly Deputy Stepan Frantenko, who is also deputy general director of the Belorechenskoye enterprise, the largest agricultural holding in the Irkutsk Region, reported complaints from local farmers about the lack of diesel fuel, as reported by the newspaper “Horizontal Russia.” According to him, Irkutsk agricultural producers are also reporting rising diesel fuel prices due to speculators, and the Buretskoye experimental production farm (OPH) in the Usolsky District has already suspended sowing due to the fuel shortage.
“All attempts [by farmers] to negotiate with suppliers are met with two responses: either they simply don’t have [fuel], or their goal is to supply western Russia. If we don’t set limits now, there will be no feed, no grain. We can simply avoid spending hundreds of millions and simply prepare for a complete shutdown of all agricultural production in the Irkutsk Region,” the deputy stated at a meeting of the Legislative Assembly Committee on Agriculture on June 11. He added that producers understand that “the situation in the country is difficult” and are prepared to accept “limits.” Frantenko also said that farmers are being offered the option of refueling at regular gas stations instead of buying in bulk.
However, it’s impossible to drive large equipment there, especially since that would lead to a shortage at gas stations, as agricultural machinery requires more fuel than cars, explained the head of Belorechenskoye. “There’s already a quiet panic. We’re resilient people, accustomed to everything, but it’s good to know and understand that we can at least get something going. If that’s not possible, we’ll try, I don’t know, importing from China, asking Xi Jinping. Because otherwise, everything will be fine,” he said, adding that he’d asked the Ministry of Agriculture to propose solutions.
Last week, the Siberian Express reported that farmers in the Krasnoyarsk Krai were also experiencing fuel shortages due to restrictions at some gas stations. One resident of the town of Sharypovo complained that the ban on diesel fuel in canisters could lead to problems refueling brush cutters, walk-behind tractors, and generators. “I milk my crops entirely using a generator. Yesterday, I turned around and went back to town to buy from another supplier. I got it without any problems, but I wasted time and money,” he noted. According to the farmer, there are rumors that restrictions on fuel sales in the region “will now be widespread.”
It seems their bomber was also denied fuel in Irkutsk. 😂
Their old garbage is bound to start crashing more and more. At least, I hope.