Eight of the ten most productive plants have already become targets of Ukrainian drones (archive image).Image: www.imago-images.de
Ukrainian attacks on Russian oil facilities are having an impact. Oil production is at a record low.
Jul 1, 2026, 5:43 amJul 1, 2026, 5:43 am
Thomas Wanhoff / t-online
The Ukrainian attacks on Russian energy infrastructure have now hit most of the largest refineries. Eight of the ten most productive facilities have already been targeted by Ukrainian drones. These include the Gazprom refinery in Moscow, which was hit by both Ukrainian drones and an errant Russian missile.
There have also been explosions in facilities in the cities of Kirishi, Ryazan, Nizhny Novgorod, Yaroslavl, Volgograd, Perm and Salavat in recent months. The Moscow refinery and the one in Yaroslavl have been attacked several times.
Only two facilities have not yet been targeted by Kiev’s drones. The Gazprom Neft facility in Omsk is the largest refinery in Russia and has so far been spared. It lies far east of the Urals and beyond the range of most Ukrainian drones. However, there was a big explosion here in August 2024, which temporarily paralyzed production. According to official information, the cause was a fire in part of the facility. The Angarsk refinery in Irkutsk is also located far in eastern Russia and is still intact.
Putin admits problems
In fact, a third of oil processing plants are shut down after attacks, according to experts from the Energy Intelligence agency. The Moscow plant is expected to be out of service for at least six months, reports the broadcaster n-tv. Processing fell to four million barrels, the lowest level in 20 years.
Even Vladimir Putin had to admit a few days ago that there is a shortage of fuel supplies. “As for attacks on critical infrastructure in general and energy infrastructure in particular, of course these attacks on our infrastructure facilities cause problems, that is obvious,” Putin said. “At the moment we are observing a certain shortage, but it is not critical.”
According to the Kremlin, Russia is holding talks with other countries about possible fuel imports. According to the Russian state news agency Tass, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov promised imports if agreements at acceptable prices were reached. This would be another step towards stabilizing the market and aimed at warding off panic buying. He did not name specific countries. But there are contacts, said Peskov.
Ukraine wants to disrupt supplies
Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Nowak also mentioned imports as a possible measure to ensure stability on the domestic fuel market.
Ukraine has significantly increased its attacks on the Russian hinterland in recent months as part of its defense against the Russian invasion. Refineries burn again and again. Kiev wants to disrupt fuel supplies for the Russian army and reduce Moscow’s income from the energy business, which is important for financing the war.