The attacks, carried out overnight Aug. 22-23, targeted the Novokuibyshevsk refinery, operated by Rosneft, and a warehouse complex belonging to online retailer Ozon in the nearby city of Chapaevsk.
Analysts with the OSINT monitoring group Exilenova+ traced footage of the blaze to the refinery site. Though Russian authorities have not confirmed the scope of the damage, before-and-after imagery points to heavy destruction.
Novokuibyshevsk is among the largest refineries in Russia's Volga region, with an annual processing capacity of roughly 8.8 million tons of crude oil, and it produces aviation fuel for the Russian military. It has been hit before: Reuters reported that an April 18 strike knocked out two of the plant's main processing units, CDU-11 and CDU-9.
At the Ozon complex, video showed a thick plume of dark smoke rising from the warehouses after the strike, with the fire appearing to spread across much of the 135,000-square-meter site by around 7:30 a.m. The facility, which opened in late October 2022, stands near plants tied to Russia's defense sector, including the Promsintez explosives plant. According to the Ukrainian group Fire Point, it marked the first Ukrainian strike on the complex.
Beyond its retail business, Ozon also sells items with potential military uses, including drones, drone components, communications gear, thermal cameras and tactical equipment.
The strikes fit into a wider Ukrainian campaign against logistics networks that support Russia's war effort. Ukraine has already struck seven of the ten largest distribution centers run by Wildberries, a rival Russian e-commerce platform, according to available reports.
(jh)
Source: Polish Radio