Germany, Poland Discuss Replacement Oil Deliveries after Russia Plans to Halt Supplies

Germany is in talks with Poland to examine whether short-term and temporary replacement oil supplies could be delivered to the PCK Schwedt refinery via the port of Gdansk after Russia said it would halt the supply of Kazakh crude oil via the Druzhba pipeline, a spokesperson for the German economy ministry said on Tuesday.

The spokesperson said the discussions were ongoing and declined to provide details, noting that supply contracts are a matter for the companies involved, while the government is closely accompanying the process.

A spokesperson for the Polish energy ministry said the country had the technical capacity to handle such deliveries, and that any potential increase in volumes depended on operational, logistical and market factors.

Russia has said it will stop the supply of Kazakh crude oil via the Druzhba pipeline to Germany from May 1, forcing a major refinery near Berlin to make up the shortfall from elsewhere.

Kazakhstan's oil exports to Germany via the Russian pipeline ⁠totalled 2.146 million metric tons, or around 43,000 barrels per day, last year, an increase of 44% from 2024, and 730,000 tons in the first quarter of 2026.

(Reuters)