The Russian president Vladimir Putin instructed the government to provide government funds to ensure a smooth heating season, including introducing regulated prices for household heating oil in some areas, the Kremlin announced today.

Russia is facing with shortages and high fuel prices the last months. In the Arctic and other regions, which face severe winter, there is a significant demand for oil used in heating.

The document, published on the Kremlin’s website, said the government would provide funds for Murmansk and other Arctic regions to prepare for the warming season and to “introduce price regulation for heating season oil.”

Despite being one of the world’s largest oil producers, Russia records high domestic prices and shortages in gasoline and diesel in recent months as high export prices benefit refiners who sell their products abroad.

On September 21, Russia introduced a ban on fuel exports to deal with high gasoline and oil prices as well as fuel shortages during the harvest season. There is no timetable for lifting the restrictions.

After the implementation of the ban, wholesale prices for diesel on the local exchange decreased by over 21%, while gasoline prices are reduced by 10%. This has yet to translate on the same scale into lower retail prices, while Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak has said the ban is starting to pay off.