(Bloomberg)– Ukrainian drone attacks have shut down three oil refineries deep in Russian territory, an attack that President Vladimir Putin said was aimed at disrupting his presidential election later this week.
An airstrike on Wednesday caused a fire at one of the country's largest crude processing facilities, Rosneft PJSC's Ryazan plant near Moscow. The smaller Novoshakhtinsk refinery in the southern Rostov region was also shut down by a drone attack, adding to disruptions caused by a similar incident at Lukoil PJSC's Norsi plant on Tuesday.
Since the start of this year, Ukraine has used drones to target major Russian oil installations from the Black Sea to the Baltic Sea. As the fighting on the front line tilts in Moscow's favor, kyiv is trying to hamper the country's exports of petroleum products and its ability to deliver fuel to its forces. A first wave of attacks in February affected nearly a fifth of the country's crude processing capacity, but by early March the industry was already recovering.
Ukrainian strikes in Russian regions “are aimed, if not at disrupting the elections in Russia, at least at interfering with them,” Putin said in an interview with the RIA Novosti news agency published on Wednesday. “Another goal is to gain some sort of advantage in a possible negotiation process.”
The Ryazan refinery, located about 200 kilometers southeast of Moscow, has a capacity of 17.1 million tonnes per year, or about 340,000 barrels per day. It is a major supplier of fuels to Russian regions around the capital.
The drone attack “started a fire” in Ryazan, which was then extinguished, regional governor Pavel Malkov said on his Telegram channel on Wednesday, without giving details on the extent of the damage. Two people were hospitalized, the Tass news agency reported. The plant had to close two primary oil refining units, Reuters reported, citing two people familiar with the matter.
These attacks highlight how the invasion of Ukraine, which was supposed to last a few days, is instead leading to growing insecurity for ordinary Russians living in regions near the border, as the war enters its third year. This stands in stark contrast to the Kremlin's claims that Putin is the guarantor of the country's defense.
The Russian Defense Ministry said its forces intercepted 58 drones overnight in the Belgorod, Bryansk, Voronezh, Kursk, Ryazan and Leningrad regions. This is one of the biggest attacks in recent months.
Later on Wednesday, the independent Novoshakhtinsk refinery in southern Russia's Rostov region halted operations after a drone strike, regional governor Vasily Golubev said on Telegram, without giving details of the damage. The facility has a capacity of 5.6 million tonnes per year, or approximately 112,000 barrels per day.
The three facilities hit by Ukrainian drones in the past two days represent about 12% of Russian oil processing capacity.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said it was “absolutely right” to inflict losses on the Russian state in retaliation for missile and drone attacks that are killing and injuring civilians in his country.
“I think everyone sees that our drones work, and they work at long range,” Zelenskiy said in a speech Tuesday evening. “Our ability to carry out long-range strikes is the real way to move forward towards security for all. »
The latest wave of attacks, which began on Tuesday, damaged a unit at Lukoil PJSC's Norsi refinery in Nizhny Novgorod and hit an oil depot in the Orel region. Ukrainian drones also repeatedly targeted Surgutneftegas PJSC's Kinef refinery in Kirishi on the Baltic coast, according to Leningrad region governor Alexander Drozdenko. A drone targeting the Kinef refinery was shot down Wednesday morning, Drozdenko said.
Kinef is a major facility focused on producing fuel for export. Any significant disruption to this plant would have repercussions on the global diesel market.
Russia fights drone attacks and Ukrainian rebel troops
Ukraine targeted refineries in Ryazan, Kirishi and Norsi, a Ukrainian official with knowledge of the matter said.
The governor of the southern Voronezh region, Alexander Gusev, said 30 drones had been destroyed. Some infrastructure and residential properties suffered “minor damage,” he said.
The attacks come as Russia prepares for the March 15-17 presidential election, tightly controlled by the Kremlin and intended to deliver a landslide victory to Putin and six more years in power.
Ukraine has launched drones targeting Russian infrastructure and industrial facilities, aiming to undermine the Kremlin's war effort and retaliate against waves of missile and drone attacks on its own territory since the invasion began in February 2022.
The strikes on oil installations are also aimed at disrupting Russian exports and fuel supplies to the Russian military on the front lines.
“We are fighting everything that finances the Russian army and the war,” Andriy Yermak, Zelenskiy’s chief of staff, said after Russian airstrikes killed and injured civilians in three cities overnight. “Russia is fighting civilians and apartment buildings. »
Ukraine says Russia hits apartment buildings, killing civilians
In his interview with the official RIA agency, Putin said Russia would demand security guarantees to consider negotiations to end the war in Ukraine and reiterated that “realities on the ground” should be the basis for any negotiations.
“We are, first of all, interested in Russia’s security,” Putin said. “We’ll go from there.”
Asked if a “fair deal” with the West was possible, Putin replied: “I don't trust anyone, but we need assurances.” »
The Ukrainian government has previously rejected any deal involving territorial concessions that would reward Putin's aggression. Putin said four annexed regions in eastern and southern Ukraine will “forever” be part of Russia, even if his forces do not fully control them.
Russian troops have recently made progress as the kyiv government struggles to keep its army supplied with ammunition following delays in aid from its American and European allies. Zelenskiy claimed this week that his forces had halted the Russian offensive and were stabilizing the front line.
Putin said the idea of using tactical nuclear weapons in Ukraine never crossed his mind and there was never a need for one. He did not believe that Russia and the United States were heading toward nuclear conflict.
He nevertheless said that countries which have declared that they have no red line towards Russia should understand that Russia would react in the same way.
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