Spain has seen an unprecedented volume of diesel fuel imports from Morocco in recent months. This sudden surge, far exceeding historical levels, raises serious questions about the fuel’s true origin and fuels suspicions that Russian diesel might be entering the EU through indirect channels. The situation poses a challenge to the European Union’s energy policy, which is committed to ending its reliance on Russian energy.
Mysterious Import Boom: Morocco as a Bypass Route?
From March to April 2025, Spain imported an impressive 123,000 tons of diesel from Morocco. This volume surpasses all historical imports from the country and signals an unusual development in the energy market. The suspicion that this could be Russian diesel disguising its origin is plausible. Morocco has not imposed sanctions on Russian energy resources following the invasion of Ukraine, making it a potential transit hub.
Experts Suspect Concealment Tactics
According to reports from El País, Morocco has imported over 1 million tons of Russian diesel since the beginning of 2025, accounting for a quarter of its total imports. Experts believe that Russian diesel is being shipped to Morocco, blended with other diesel oils, and then re-exported to Spain. This process is intended to obscure the fuel’s original source. The diesel, it is suspected, is imported by Rabat at lower prices and then re-sold with a North African certification. The Spanish government has been investigating these practices since 2023 but has not yet been able to provide conclusive proof of Russian origin.
A Broader Pattern of Circumvention Strategies
The increase in diesel imports from Morocco is not an isolated incident. Since the start of the war in Ukraine, Spain has also increased its diesel imports from other, previously uncommon countries such as Singapore and Turkey. This is reminiscent of a 2024 investigation into a “diesel mafia” whose fraudulent activities, estimated at 1.9 billion euros, involved importing oil from sanctioned countries like Iran, Russia, and Syria, with altered certificates of origin from Turkey and Morocco. This underscores the complexity and ongoing challenges in enforcing sanctions in the global energy market.
Russia’s Economy Defies Sanctions
While many EU countries, including Spain, continue to import Russian energy, directly or indirectly, the Russian economy appears more resilient than expected. Despite Western sanctions, the IMF noted that Russia grew by 4.1 percent in 2024 – a figure higher than that of the United States, the EU, and Spain. Russia’s war economy and the unimpeded flow of oil tankers to India and China significantly contribute to substantial revenues flowing into the Russian state coffers. The ongoing imports, even via intermediary countries, could thus inadvertently contribute to strengthening the Russian economy.
