A Moscow car dealership is struggling to keep up with demand for new electric vehicles as drivers try to avoid a fuel shortage that has led to long lines at gas stations and rising prices at the pump across much of Russia, Reuters reports.
Intensified Ukrainian attacks on Russian energy infrastructure have reduced supplies of gasoline and diesel in recent weeks, forcing restrictions in most Russian regions. Retail gasoline prices in some areas have reached among the highest in Europe, according to Reuters calculations.
Until now, Russia’s long distances, harsh climate and limited charging network have limited the expansion of the electric vehicle market. But growing fuel supply challenges are spurring some drivers to switch to electric cars, according to Agerpres.
EN Cars, a car dealership specializing in Chinese brands, is selling two to three electric vehicles a day, compared with two to three a month just a few weeks ago, said the company’s founder Yevgeniy Zabelin. “Since the fuel situation became complicated, demand has increased several times,” he said, adding that interest is growing for both budget and premium models.
In the showroom, potential buyers inspect electric SUVs made by Chinese automaker Geely. With fuel prices rising more than 12 percent year-on-year between January and May, demand for electric vehicles was already on the rise in Russia.
About 24,600 new plug-in hybrid cars were sold in the first five months of the year in Russia, a 125% increase from a year earlier, while sales of new all-electric cars rose 19% to 4,460, according to consulting firm Autostat and the Ministry of Industry and Trade.
Sales accelerated further in June as fuel shortages emerged. Last week, 1,754 new plug-in hybrids were registered, up almost a third from the previous week and almost 50% above the average weekly pace this year, according to Autostat chief Sergei Tselikov.
At the same time, the number of charging stations in Russia increased by 20% between July 2025 and July 2026, according to digital mapping service 2GIS.
At the EN Cars dealership, Vasiliy, one of the customers, said he was happy to have already bought a hybrid and an electric vehicle. “Especially in the current situation, I haven’t had any problems,” Vasiliy said, adding that he doesn’t expect the explosion of interest in electric cars to last. “I live in a private house in the country. I installed my own charging station and charge at home. In Moscow, it’s a real problem to charge properly,” Vasiliy says.
Last year, electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids accounted for just 4.3% of total car sales in Russia.