Ukraine's New Card In War Strategy: Attacks On Russian Oil Infrastructure

The refinery, which lies 900 kilometres southeast of Kyiv and delivers oil products mainly for exports, has annual production capacity of about 12 million metric tons.

29 Apr 2026, 09:49 · NDTV

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Ukrainian drones struck Russia's Tuapse oil refinery three times in April 2023
The refinery supplies about 12% of Russia's fuel exports and is key on the Black Sea coast
Firefighters battled spills and acid rain caused by the April 28 drone attack at Tuapse

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Ukrainian drones conducted three strikes on a major Russian oil refinery, exacerbating anxiety over supply from key facilities in Eastern Hemisphere at a time the focus remains on the blockaded Strait Of Hormuz.

Heavy, black smoke rose above the Black sea port of Tuapse and firefighters battled to contain the damage done by the April 28, with the previous two attacks on April 16 and April 20 having already destroyed 24 oil storage tanks and damaged four others.

More than 160 firefighters were deployed to extinguish the blaze, Krasnodar regional governor Veniamin Kondratyev said on Tuesday, and 300 more are on the way.

Tuapse oil refinery on fire.
Photo Credit: Reuters

The Damage

Boiling oil products spilled from the Rosneft-owned refinery onto the streets, puddles of water turned to steam and several cars were damaged. Acid rain was reported in the port city, sending atmospheric readings of benzene, xylene and soot spiralling. The rain left a black coating on surfaces, while Reuters reported that images on local social media accounts showed stray dogs and cats with black residue on their fur. Dead fish and birds were lying on the beaches.

Residents were evacuated amid warning of harmful toxic emissions "two to three times permissible levels".

Emergencies Minister Alexander Kurenkov said the flow of oil products into the Black Sea had been stopped and booms would ensure the spills did not spread. A trail of black smoke from the fire stretched for hundreds of miles, according to NASA Worldview satellite data.

Acid rain was reported in Tuapse, leading to oily residue accumulating on surfaces.
Photo Credit: Reuters

Why Tuapse Oil Refinery Matters

The refinery, which lies 900 kilometres southeast of Kyiv and delivers oil products mainly for exports, has annual production capacity of about 12 million metric tons, or 240,000 barrels per day, turning out naphtha, diesel, fuel oil and vacuum gas oil. It has been in operation since 1929 and now accounts for about 12 per cent of Russia's total fuel export capacity.

The refinery is one of Russia's top 10 and the only major facility on its Black Sea coast. It closely tied to a port terminal used for fuel exports.

Operations remain halted since the April 16 drone attack, making shipping the oil out impossible.

Sustained Attacks On Russian Oil Infrastructure

Russian President Vladimir Putin admitted the increased targeting of civilian infrastructure, while adding that the Tuapse strikes could "cause serious environmental consequences" in reference to the resultant oil spill at sea.

In fact, just three days before Tuapse was first attacked, Russian oil giant Rosneft had diverted oil supplies to the refinery from the Black Sea port of Novorossiysk after the terminal, which handles roughly 14 per cent of Russia's crude exports, was heavily damaged in a drone attack, per Reuters. Two of its main berths were damaged, forcing oil exports from the port to halt.

Images of the Tuapse oil refinery before and after the April 16 attack.
Photo Credit: AFP

According to an analysis by Reuters, around a dozen refineries have been hit in recent weeks, along with additional ports and tankers.

Over the past month, Russia's Ust-Luga and Primorsk oil export terminals in the Baltic Sea were also struck by drones, cutting off as much as 40 per cent of oil export revenue. An oil tank farm and oil loading pier at the Transneft-Port Primorsk terminal in Primorsk, and the Saratov oil refinery and the Bashneft-Ufaneftekhim oil refinery were also targeted, per Al Jazeera.

A Kyiv Strategy?

Russian oil and gas accounts for a big slice of Moscow's federal budget. Add to that the windfall gains in a world that turns to Russian oil as the Strait Of Hormuz remains all but shut and oil supply from the Gulf choked. The Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air estimated that Russia earned an additional 672 million euros ($777 million) in oil sales in just the first two weeks of the war, owing to Hormuz's closure and soaring global oil prices, per Al Jazeera.

The Kremlin accused Ukraine of exacerbating a global oil shortage by targeting storage facilities containing oil intended for export. Kyiv is percieved to have been orchestrating the attacks to dent Russia's revenues from energy exports, a key source of funding for the army. "This facility (Tuapse) is involved in supplying the Russian Federation's occupation army on Ukrainian territory," the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said in a Facebook statement.

Oleksandr Kharchenko, the director of the Kyiv-based Energy Industry Research Center, told CBC News that each successful Ukrainian strike makes it more expensive for Moscow to export its energy. Add to that a disrupted export schedule and a heavily reduced number of crews willing to risk their safety by stopping at ports under a likely Ukrainian gaze.

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