Russia's largest oil refinery halts operations after Ukrainian drone strike, sources say

Russia's largest oil refinery, the Omsk refinery, has halted operations following a Ukrainian drone attack on Monday, two industry sources said on Tuesday, in one of Ukraine's longest-range strikes of the conflict.

The halt at the plant, Russia's top producer of petrol, is likely to exacerbate fuel shortages across the country. A crude distillation unit accounting for about 38 percent of the plant's capacity caught fire and was damaged in the attack, the sources said. Another primary processing unit was also halted after damage to network links essential to its operation.

Gazprom Neft, which owns the refinery, has not commented. The refinery has stopped selling gasoline and diesel on the Saint Petersburg International Mercantile Exchange since Tuesday.

In a separate development, Ukrainian drones have attacked a dozen tankers from Russia's "shadow fleet" over the past two days that were delivering fuel to Crimea, Kyiv's military said. Eight sanctioned vessels in the Sea of Azov were struck, with two more hit later in the day.

Ukraine has stepped up attacks on logistics and energy infrastructure in Crimea in recent weeks, causing fuel shortages and prompting authorities to declare a state of emergency in the peninsula.

Reuters

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