Over the weekend of 19-21 July 2026, Kazakhstan was forced to stop pumping crude to its main export outlet on Russia's Black Sea coast after drones struck several tankers at the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) terminal near Novorossiysk. Rattled by the hits on the vessels Asia, Nelsa and Nissos Ios, shipping companies stopped calling at the port.
The scale is real: the CPC normally moves around 1.3-1.6 million barrels a day, more than 1% of world supply and over 80% of everything Kazakhstan exports. Kazakhstan alone accounts for about 12% of the EU's crude imports. No wonder the headlines call it an oil shock.
Why Germany is barely affected this time
Here is the context the headlines leave out: the Kazakh oil that reaches Germany does not come across the Black Sea at all. It flows through the northern arm of the Druzhba pipeline to the PCK Schwedt refinery in Brandenburg, overland. In 2025 Kazakhstan sent about 2.15 million tonnes that way, roughly 17% of Schwedt's throughput. That route is simply not affected by a halt at a Black Sea terminal.
So for Germany, the CPC halt leaves mainly one thing: the small, global effect on the crude price. The CPC moves over 1% of world supply, its outage nudges Brent up by a few dollars, and that touches every importer a little, Germany included, but only a little.
What actually drives the German price
Crude is only about a third of what you pay at the pump anyway. Energy tax, the CO2 price and 19% VAT make up more than half, with distribution and margin on top. A few dollars more on Brent therefore means fractions of a cent per litre, lagged by weeks, not the jump a crisis headline implies.
The more important Kazakh question for Germany is a different one: the reliability of the Druzhba route to Schwedt, which has recently been under political pressure. That is the supply story to keep an eye on, not the Black Sea halt.
Where Germany stands right now
As of 22 July 2026, petrol in Germany averages 2.17 €/L and diesel 2.16 €/L, against an EU average of 1.88 €/L and 1.95 €/L. Here is how Germany compares with its neighbours:
| Country | Gasoline (€/L) | Diesel (€/L) |
|---|---|---|
| 🇩🇪 Germany | 2.17 | 2.16 |
| 🇦🇹 Austria | 1.86 | 1.98 |
| 🇫🇷 France | 2.03 | 2.14 |
Live national averages, cheapest per fuel in bold.
What to watch
A few days of standstill at the CPC terminal is market noise. If the outage runs for weeks, it would tighten crude around the Mediterranean and lift wholesale diesel across Europe a little, Germany included. We track it the only honest way, through the price you actually see at the pump.
Petromap follows German stations live. Use the live map for the cheapest fuel near you, or the Germany country page for today's national and city averages.