Europe’s refining sector struggles to adapt
Aftershocks from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine continue to roil refining and flows of products around Europe, in the Atlantic basin and across the world
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has resulted in significant disruption for the Atlantic basin refining sector. Europe’s refineries have already turned away from Russian crude, feedstocks and products amid widespread self-sanctioning and looming embargoes, but questions remain over security of supply. And there are now huge opportunities for refining centres further afield, particularly the rapidly expanding sector in the Mideast. “We expect the current tightness in global refining capacity to continue through winter,” says George Dix, refining analyst for consultancy Energy Aspects. This will be the case "particularly for diesel” due to the European embargo on Russian supply from February 2023,
Also in this section
2 April 2026
Alongside a rapid continued build-out of renewables, China’s latest five-year plan stresses the value of domestic hydrocarbon production for energy security and calls for increased Russian gas imports
2 April 2026
The government is taking important steps to revive domestic production, lift investment and benefit from the geopolitical crisis even if more needs to be done in the longer term
1 April 2026
Golden Pass’s startup offers QatarEnergy a timely boost but may also force a difficult choice between honouring disrupted contracts and capitalising on soaring spot LNG prices
1 April 2026
It is not a case of if or when, but the length and magnitude of economic damage from elevated oil prices






