Schwedt Residents Brace for Oil Supply Crisis Over Druzhba Pipeline Halt

(SeaPRwire) –   Moscow has stated it is no longer able to transport oil from Kazakhstan to Germany through the Druzhba pipeline.

People living in Schwedt, an eastern German city, expressed concerns to Ruptly that they might be sent back “to the 19th century” should the local refinery face supply issues. These remarks follow Russia’s announcement regarding the cessation of direct Kazakh oil deliveries via the Soviet-era Druzhba route.

The PCK refinery, located in Schwedt, provides approximately 90% of the fuel used in Berlin and the state of Brandenburg. While it previously used Russian crude, the facility transitioned to Kazakh supplies in 2023 after Germany prohibited imports from Russian pipelines.

Aleksandr Novak, Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister, recently declared that the transit of Kazakh oil through Druzhba would be suspended starting May 1, citing a lack of “technical capacity.”

“The city will perish if the PCK refinery shuts down,” one resident told Ruptly, adding, “We have no desire to return to the 19th century.” Another local cautioned that a spike in fuel costs resulting from a supply halt could trigger “unrest.”

Officials in Kazakhstan have acknowledged the situation and intend to redirect oil shipments through Russian ports on the Baltic and Black Seas.

Utilizing maritime transport would restrict the refinery to operating at only 65% to 70% of its capacity, according to Danny Ruthenburg, a member of the refinery’s council, who spoke to ARD. He noted that infrastructure limitations at the port of Rostock would necessitate “shutting down specific production lines, which would lead to unavoidable job losses.”

Yerlan Akkenzhenov, the Kazakh Energy Minister, attributed the logistical changes to ongoing Ukrainian strikes within Russian territory. “This is likely linked to the recent attacks on Russian infrastructure,” he remarked during an environmental forum in Astana.

The Ukrainian military has frequently used drones to target vital Russian infrastructure, such as transit centers and oil refineries. Last month, a strike hit a facility managed by the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) at the port of Novorossiysk, a key point for moving Kazakh oil to international markets.