Gasoline prices in the Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk dropped sharply on Aug. 3, the day Vladimir Putin visited the city. The cost of gasoline then returned to previous levels after he left.
According to a report by local outlet Prospekt Mira, the price of gasoline at stations run by Krasnoyarsknefteprodukt, or KNP, rose sharply on Aug. 4 — from 67 rubles to 91 rubles per liter for AI-95, a common grade of premium gasoline in Russia. Prices for other grades of gasoline and for diesel also jumped.
“Prices at a KNP gas station just changed before the eyes of a Prospekt Mira employee… In literally one minute, AI-92 and AI-95 rose by 24 rubles, and diesel by 21 rubles,” the outlet wrote.
Earlier, on the evening of Aug. 2, prices at KNP gas stations in Krasnoyarsk had fallen just as sharply: AI-95 dropped from 91 rubles to 67 rubles, and AI-92 from 87 rubles to 53 rubles. Putin visited the city on Aug. 3. That day, traffic and parking were restricted on several streets, and driving schools were barred from holding lessons.
KNP explained the short-term price cut as the result of a temporary improvement in logistics and the arrival of additional fuel supplies.
Notably, a similar price pattern accompanied Putin’s trip to Irkutsk two weeks earlier, when the price of AI-95 at one large local gas station fell by 12.6 rubles on July 24.
The Krasnoyarsk regional government owns a controlling stake in KNP. In mid-July, the chain restricted regular sales of AI-95 and began selling it using coupons, citing instability in the wholesale market, along with supply disruptions. Some Krasnoyarsk gas stations had no gasoline available, while at some privately-owned stations the price of AI-95 reached 135 rubles per liter.
Russia has been experiencing an acute fuel crisis in recent months amid Ukrainian drone strikes on the country’s oil refineries. The campaign has managed to knock out almost half of Russia’s nominal refining capacity and one-third of its actual refining capacity. According to official data, from May to June 2026 the price of AI-92 gasoline rose 7.3% from the previous month, AI-95 rose 6.7%, and AI-98 rose 3.1%. Compared with June 2025, fuel prices at gas stations were up by 19.9%.
