Casablanca – In recent months, diesel imports from Morocco to Spain have surged to unprecedented levels, triggering scrutiny from European authorities and industry observers amid suspicions that part of the fuel may originate from Russia. The trend, emerging against the backdrop of ongoing European Union sanctions on Russian energy products, has reignited debates over energy security, trade circumvention, and regulatory oversight.

According to data from Spain’s Strategic Petroleum Reserves Corporation (CORES), Spanish ports received 123,000 metric tons of diesel from Morocco during March and April 2025 alone. This volume exceeds the total amount of diesel imported from Morocco over the previous four years combined, a development that has surprised energy analysts and government officials alike.

Suspicions of Russian origin

While the diesel is officially registered as Moroccan, experts and industrial sources interviewed by outlets such as El País have raised questions about the origin of the fuel. Given Morocco’s ongoing purchases of Russian diesel, combined with its lack of operational refineries since 2016, some specialists believe that the country may be acting as a transit point for re-exporting Russian fuel into Europe under a different label.

Maritime tracking data from Vortexa, a platform that monitors global shipping flows, shows that Morocco imported over one million tons of diesel from Russia in the first five months of 2025. This figure accounts for roughly 25% of Morocco’s total diesel imports this year. In comparison, Russian diesel made up just 9% of Morocco’s total diesel imports in 2024, and around 1.62 million tons in 2023.

Such patterns have prompted suggestions that diesel is being imported from Russia into Morocco, possibly blended or stored alongside other stocks, and then exported to countries like Spain with Moroccan certificates of origin. This process, known as “triangular trade circumvention,” has become increasingly common in global markets subject to sanctions.

Technical hurdles in traceability

Despite growing concerns, establishing the true origin of refined fuels like diesel is technically complex. Unlike crude oil, which carries distinct chemical fingerprints based on its geographic source, diesel is a standardized product with globally similar specifications. Once blended or transferred between storage systems, its origin becomes virtually undetectable.

These challenges have limited the effectiveness of regulatory and customs authorities in tracing supply chains. Spanish officials began investigating diesel shipments from Tangier as early as 2023, but no conclusive evidence has yet been presented linking the Moroccan diesel imports directly to Russian suppliers.

“The homogeneity of diesel makes it nearly impossible to verify its source once it enters the market,” said an unnamed Spanish energy official in comments to El País. “We are trying to monitor flows, but the tools available are insufficient.”

Political and economic dimensions

The European Union imposed sanctions on Russian oil and refined petroleum products in February 2023 in response to the invasion of Ukraine. These measures included bans on direct imports, price caps, and restrictions on shipping and insurance for Russian oil. However, many observers argue that these sanctions have created incentives for Russia to reroute its energy exports through third countries that are not subject to EU restrictions.

Morocco, which has not adopted any sanctions against Russian hydrocarbons, has become one of several countries—alongside Turkey, India, and China—that have seen rising imports of Russian fuels. Unlike the EU, Morocco continues to trade freely with Russia in the energy sector, citing its sovereign energy needs and non-alignment in the geopolitical dispute.

This flexibility has allowed Russia to maintain significant export volumes despite Western sanctions. In fact, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) reported that the Russian economy grew by 4.1% in 2024, surpassing the growth rates of major Western economies, largely driven by energy revenues and adaptive trade strategies.

Private sector concerns

The rise in Moroccan diesel exports has also stirred concerns among European energy companies, which argue that the influx of potentially discounted Russian-origin fuel is distorting market dynamics. Executives at firms such as Exolum and Repsol have publicly warned that diesel entering Europe via countries like Morocco and Turkey undermines fair competition and weakens the impact of sanctions.

In mid-2023, a senior executive from Exolum noted that European authorities lacked effective tools to monitor the origin of diesel imports, emphasizing the need for stronger regulatory frameworks. Likewise, in early 2024, Repsol representatives pointed to the growing difficulty of enforcing sanctions in a globalized energy market increasingly dominated by intermediaries.

Ongoing investigations and future steps

In response to the surge in Moroccan diesel imports, Spain’s Ministry for the Ecological Transition has launched multiple investigations, in coordination with the national competition authority and anti-fraud units. These efforts form part of a broader probe into what the Spanish media has dubbed the “Diesel Mafia”—a suspected network of companies involved in re-exporting fuel from sanctioned countries, including Russia, Syria, and Iran, via intermediary nations.

To date, no legal action has been taken against Moroccan or Spanish companies in connection with the latest diesel shipments, but several firms are reportedly under review.

As geopolitical tensions persist and global energy markets remain volatile, the issue of diesel origin and supply chain transparency is likely to remain on the radar of both policymakers and industry stakeholders in Europe. While Morocco denies any wrongdoing and emphasizes its compliance with international trade rules, the burden of proof—and enforcement—now lies with European institutions seeking to uphold their sanctions regimes.