Ukrainian strikes on three major Russian oil refineries over the past week have put more than 45% of Russia’s oil refining capacity out of operation, according to Ukraine’s General Staff. The assessment follows a 20 September strike on the Moscow Oil Refinery, which the General Staff said was the latest in a series of attacks targeting key elements of Russia’s energy infrastructure. According to the Ukrainian military, its forces carried out strikes on strategically important facilities in Russia and Russian-occupied Ukrainian territories between 14 and 20 September, focusing on sites supporting Moscow’s military and economic capabilities.
The first strike occurred overnight on 14–15 September at the Syzran Oil Refinery in Russia’s Samara region. Ukrainian forces targeted the facility’s AVT-6 crude oil distillation unit and an associated tank farm, according to the General Staff. A second refinery was hit overnight on 16–17 September, when the Slavneft-YANOS refinery in Yaroslavl came under attack. The plant has an annual refining capacity of approximately 15 million tonnes of crude oil. The Ukrainian military said its AVT-3 crude oil distillation unit was damaged. On 20 September, Ukrainian forces struck Gazprom’s Moscow Oil Refinery. The General Staff said several major processing facilities were hit, including the AVT-6 crude oil distillation unit, a comprehensive oil-processing unit and an isomerisation unit. The Ukrainian General Staff said the cumulative impact of the attacks had pushed the share of Russia’s refining capacity taken offline above 45% as of 21 September. Ukraine also said the refinery disruptions were contributing to shortages of higher-quality petroleum products inside Russia, including a significant reduction in the production of Euro-5/K5-standard petrol and diesel. The General Staff said the attacks were carried out as part of Ukraine’s right to self-defence under Article 51 of the UN Charter and were intended to weaken Russia’s military and economic capacity to sustain its war effort. The attacks come amid growing pressure on Russia’s fuel sector. US President Donald Trump has said Russia has lost control of its oil-refining industry and called on Moscow to end what he described as its “never-ending war” against Ukraine. The shutdown of three refineries has also been linked to a decline in Russia’s petroleum-product output, with diesel fuel sales on the Russian exchange falling sharply, according to the background cited by Ukraine’s General Staff.
Source: Kanal13
