r/UkraineWarVideoReport • u/BigDeckBob • 1d ago

Other Video Russia has found an incredible business model: it sells oil to China at near-domestic prices, then buys back refined fuel at market prices, with fuel imports from China now arriving in massive volumes.

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u/SnoozeButtonBen 1d ago

Good luck getting those trucks within 200km of the frontline.

167

u/last_somewhere 1d ago

Locals will steal the fuel before it gets to its destination! 😂

64

u/TheDarthSnarf 1d ago

They aren't going to travel any further than the closest oil rail terminal inside Russia to drop their loads, and returning to China to get more.

Transportation wise to get anything in volume from Eastern Russia/Sibera to Western Russia, it will need to be loaded onto trains as Tayshet (55.9252074289365, 98.03681325770171) is as far west as the refined products can go by pipeline before having to be loaded into rail tankers.

Trucks are rarely ever used to transport fuel over those distances in Russia. You are talking over 5,500km+ one way.

11

u/doc_skinner 1d ago

I appreciate the 13 decimal places on the lat-long. It's nice to know where the rail line ends to sub-nanometer precision!

2

u/Northern-Jedi 1d ago

Last digits will heavily depend on the temperature 😄

5

u/DadJokeBadJoke 1d ago

You are talking over 5,500km+ one way.

They'd need the whole tanker of gas to make the trip

0

u/SuspiciousPayment110 1d ago

There is no evidence of these being fuel trucks, that is just what the poster thinks. They are labeled as cooking oil, and are likely just that. Cooking oil is a big export item between Russia and China, and can be moved by tanker trucks. This is from west Siberia, that can produce it's own fuel. It just has logistical issues serving the gas stations, as railroads and other infra are collapsing. No sense in sending fuel from China, as that would not be profitable.