Recent Ukrainian drone attacks on Russian oil refineries have reduced the country's oil processing capacity by around 30 per cent, adding pressure on Moscow
as it faces renewed domestic fuel shortages, Reuters reported on Tuesday, citing two industry sources. Ukraine has intensified strikes on Russian energy infrastructure since late October, following the collapse of a proposed ceasefire on attacks against energy facilities announced by US President Donald Trump. According to industry sources and officials cited by Reuters, Ukrainian attacks disrupted operations and triggered emergency situations at nine of Russia's 35 major refineries over the past week. The combined daily nameplate capacity of Russian refineries affected by drone strikes since late October stands at approximately 300,000 metric tonnes, equivalent to around 2.2 million barrels, the sources said. Russia's total primary oil refining capacity is estimated at about 930,000 tonnes per day. At the end of October, Russian refineries were processing approximately 700,000 tonnes, or five million barrels, of crude oil daily. The industry sources estimated that actual crude processing could have fallen by as much as 200,000 tonnes per day. The affected facilities include refineries in Ryazan, Yaroslavl and the Volga region. One of the latest incidents occurred on Monday, when a Ukrainian drone struck the Kirishi refinery in Russia's Leningrad region. The facility, described as the country's second-largest oil refinery, caught fire following the overnight attack. The regional governor said a woman was killed. The attacks have added to Moscow's difficulties in managing domestic fuel supplies while continuing diesel exports under an agreement with the United States. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov accused Ukraine of ignoring Trump's calls to halt strikes on Russian energy infrastructure in an article published in the newspaper Kommersant on Tuesday. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, meanwhile, said Kyiv was continuing attacks on targets linked to Russia's oil sector in response to Russian strikes on Ukrainian energy infrastructure. He said power plants, electricity networks, heating systems and water supplies remained under constant attack, accusing Moscow of rejecting de-escalation measures proposed by Ukraine's international partners.
