The facility, which processes approximately 14 million tons of crude per year, reportedly sustained damage.
Andriy Kovalenko, an official in Kyiv, wrote on Telegram that the Volgograd refinery, responsible for around 7% of Russia’s diesel output, was hit in the overnight incident. A Ukrainian Telegram channel, Supernova, shared videos capturing the sound of an approaching drone, followed by an explosion. BBC Russian said one clip appeared to be filmed by a resident living less than two kilometers from the sprawling refinery site.
Volgograd Governor Andrei Bocharov said in a statement on Telegram that air defense shot down eight drones targeting the region. Falling debris from one of the intercepted drones ignited a blaze at the refinery but was “quickly extinguished,” he added. One worker at the facility was reportedly injured.
String of attacks on Russian refineries
This latest strike adds to the growing list of drone attacks on Russian fuel infrastructure. Late last year, another Lukoil refinery in Rostov region temporarily halted operations following a December attack.
On January 29, drones targeted Lukoil’s Kstovo refinery and an oil depot in the same area, as well as the Andreapol pumping station on the Baltic Pipeline System-2. Earlier in January, drones struck a refinery in Ryazan and the Kremniy-El chip factory, the latter suspending operations following the incident.
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Source: Polskie Radio 24, Reuters