Perhaps you are forgetting that the soviets start with a considerable fuel advantage?
Which doesn't even really matter anyway.
Ostheer Starting Fuel: 20
Infanterie Kompanie: 10
Soviet Starting Fuel: 50
Special Rifle Command: 40
Support Weapon Kampaneya: 50
Molotov / AT Grenades: 50 (25 each, although nobody in the right mind would open with this combo)
Ostheer has 10 fuel left after building T1, Soviet only has 10 if they build T1, 0 if T2.