Since the beginning of the war, the Ukrainian Armed Forces have attacked Russian oil refineries at least 158 times. According to the publication Vot Tak, 24 of 33 refineries with a capacity of at least 1 million tons of oil per year have been hit. While there were no attacks on refineries in the first year of the war, there were 4 in 2023, 34 in 2024, and 88 in 2025. In less than five months of this year, Ukrainian drones have struck oil refineries 33 times. This is more than in the same period of 2025 (24 attacks).
The Ukrainian Armed Forces most frequently strike the Ryazan and Saratov oil refineries—each has been attacked 15 times since the beginning of the war. Both refineries are among the largest oil refineries in the European part of Russia. The Ryazan Oil Refinery processes approximately 17 million tons of oil per year, making it the third-largest oil refinery in the country after the Omsk and Kirishi refineries. The Saratov Oil Refinery, meanwhile, produces approximately 7 million tons of oil per year. The Afipsky, Ilsky, and Tuapse oil refineries, all located in the Krasnodar Krai, are also regularly hit. Each of them has been hit 12 times. The capacity of these refineries is comparable to the Saratov refinery – approximately 7-9 million tons of oil per year.
Meanwhile, there are virtually no large oil refineries left in Russia (with a refining capacity of 10 million tons of oil per year or more) that have not previously been attacked by Ukraine. The only two such facilities are located beyond the Urals – the Omsk and Angarsk Oil Refineries. The Omsk Oil Refinery is the largest oil refinery in Russia by oil refining capacity, producing approximately 21 million tons of petroleum products per year. The capacity of the Angarsk Oil Refinery is approximately 10.2 million tons of oil per year.
The strikes on oil refineries are part of Ukraine's strategy aimed at reducing Russian oil and gas revenues and creating a domestic fuel shortage. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has repeatedly called such attacks Kyiv's "long-range sanctions," aimed at forcing the Kremlin to the negotiating table.
According to Reuters, due to the ongoing strikes, almost all major refineries in central Russia, which account for more than 30% of the country's oil refining, have suspended operations. Overall, oil refining at 16 Russian refineries fell by 700,000 barrels per day from January to May compared to the previous year. Citing intelligence data, Zelenskyy stated that oil refining volume in Russia had fallen by 10% in recent months. According to Bloomberg, this figure fell to its lowest level since 2009—4.69 million barrels per day.
The Ukrainian Armed Forces most frequently strike the Ryazan and Saratov oil refineries—each has been attacked 15 times since the beginning of the war. Both refineries are among the largest oil refineries in the European part of Russia. The Ryazan Oil Refinery processes approximately 17 million tons of oil per year, making it the third-largest oil refinery in the country after the Omsk and Kirishi refineries. The Saratov Oil Refinery, meanwhile, produces approximately 7 million tons of oil per year. The Afipsky, Ilsky, and Tuapse oil refineries, all located in the Krasnodar Krai, are also regularly hit. Each of them has been hit 12 times. The capacity of these refineries is comparable to the Saratov refinery – approximately 7-9 million tons of oil per year.
Meanwhile, there are virtually no large oil refineries left in Russia (with a refining capacity of 10 million tons of oil per year or more) that have not previously been attacked by Ukraine. The only two such facilities are located beyond the Urals – the Omsk and Angarsk Oil Refineries. The Omsk Oil Refinery is the largest oil refinery in Russia by oil refining capacity, producing approximately 21 million tons of petroleum products per year. The capacity of the Angarsk Oil Refinery is approximately 10.2 million tons of oil per year.
The strikes on oil refineries are part of Ukraine's strategy aimed at reducing Russian oil and gas revenues and creating a domestic fuel shortage. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has repeatedly called such attacks Kyiv's "long-range sanctions," aimed at forcing the Kremlin to the negotiating table.
According to Reuters, due to the ongoing strikes, almost all major refineries in central Russia, which account for more than 30% of the country's oil refining, have suspended operations. Overall, oil refining at 16 Russian refineries fell by 700,000 barrels per day from January to May compared to the previous year. Citing intelligence data, Zelenskyy stated that oil refining volume in Russia had fallen by 10% in recent months. According to Bloomberg, this figure fell to its lowest level since 2009—4.69 million barrels per day.
