The Kirishi refinery is a critical facility in Russia’s oil production landscape.
Ukraine executed a large-scale drone attack targeting a significant oil refinery in Russia, resulting in a brief fire incident, as reported by Reuters on Sunday. The Kirishi refinery, located in the Leningrad region, is one of the largest in the country, with an annual processing capacity of 17.7 million metric tonnes of crude oil. This facility is crucial, representing approximately 6.4% of Russia’s overall refining capabilities.
According to Russia’s defense ministry, the attack involved the deployment of at least 361 Ukrainian drones, alongside four guided aerial bombs and a missile from the United States-made High Mobility Artillery Rocket System. The ministry stated that these drones were intercepted, though falling debris from the drones ignited a fire at the refinery. Fortunately, Leningrad Governor Alexander Drozdenko confirmed that the fire was swiftly contained and no injuries were reported as a result of the incident.
In a nightly address, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy commended the operation, characterizing long-range strikes on Russian oil infrastructure as “the most effective sanctions” against Moscow. He noted that these actions have considerably hampered the Russian oil industry, thereby limiting the resources available for the ongoing conflict. The implications of such strikes are significant, as they aim to diminish Russia’s ability to sustain its military operations.
Despite Russia’s status as the world’s second-largest oil exporter, recent weeks have seen shortages in oil availability. This situation has been exacerbated by a seasonal increase in demand, alongside the impact of Ukraine’s drone strikes on critical infrastructure. Since the onset of its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Russia has reportedly accrued around $985 billion from oil and gas exports, as detailed by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air.
The ongoing conflict, which began with Russia’s invasion on February 24, 2022, has evolved into one of the most deadly confrontations in Europe since World War II. While Moscow maintains that it is executing a special military operation to thwart what it claims is Western aggression from Ukraine, the latter, along with its Western allies, contends that Russia’s actions amount to an imperial-style occupation. The drone attack on the Kirishi refinery represents a significant escalation in the ongoing conflict, with broader implications for both regional stability and the global oil market.
