"National enterprises are substantially lagging behind foreign companies in terms of advanced oil refining and producing the main oil products," he said Monday in a meeting with oil and gas companies. "When producing crude oil, Russia has to buy many petrochemical products, from plastics to chemical fibers.

"Thus, the weak development of our own refining industry results in substantial economic costs," Putin said. "We are missing the opportunity to fill more profitable niches in the world's division of labor."

Russia has vast oil and gas resources, and a foothold in the refining sector would give it strong control of the global hydrocarbons market.