Ukrainian drones halt operations at two major Russian oil refineries

Oil refineries in the Russian cities of Syzran and Saratov have completely halted crude processing following a series of Ukrainian drone strikes. The news agency Reuters reported this, citing its own sources.

Syzran: main processing unit damaged

According to the agency, the drone attack on the Syzran refinery (Samara region) damaged the key CDU-6 primary crude processing unit, with a capacity of 17,100 tonnes per day — about 71% of the plant's total refining capacity. Reuters sources say repairs could take at least a month.

In effect, this amounts to a complete shutdown of the plant: the second unit, CDU-5, with a capacity of 7,100 tonnes per day (29% of capacity), was already undergoing repairs at the time of the September 15 attack, following an earlier drone strike in July. The Syzran refinery's designed capacity is 8.5 million tonnes of oil per year, or roughly 150,000 barrels per day.

Saratov: second shutdown in a month

The Saratov refinery halted crude processing on September 11 after another drone attack. According to the agency's sources, the plant had already suspended operations on September 8 due to equipment damage and fires caused by a previous strike, and was preparing to resume processing on September 10–11. Before that, the refinery had been shut down for several weeks following an August 2 attack. The Saratov refinery's capacity is seven million tonnes of oil per year, around 140,000 barrels per day.

According to Reuters' assessment, the simultaneous shutdown of two major refineries could worsen an already acute fuel shortage on the Russian market: Russia has already restricted exports of gasoline, diesel and jet fuel.

Refinery strikes as part of Ukraine's strategy

Ukraine, which has been repelling a full-scale Russian invasion since 2022, has significantly stepped up its retaliatory strikes deep into Russian territory in recent months, with oil refineries emerging as one of its primary targets. Russia, for its part, regularly strikes not only Ukraine's energy infrastructure but other facilities as well.

US President Donald Trump previously claimed that the two sides had supposedly agreed not to attack each other's energy facilities, though no official agreement to that effect has ever been concluded. Trump has also linked Ukrainian strikes to high global fuel prices, although experts say the US conflict with Iran has had a far greater impact on prices than Ukraine's actions.

Source: novinky.cz