EXCLUSIVE-Oil refining at a standstill in central Russia after Ukrainian drone strikes, sources say

‌Virtually ​all major oil refineries in central Russia have been forced to halt or scale back fuel output following Ukrainian drone attacks in ‌recent days, according to official data and sources. Moscow already introduced gasoline exports ban starting from April until the end of July.

The combined capacity of refineries that have fully or partially halted operations exceeds 83 ‌million metric tons per year, or around 238,000 tons per day. That accounts for around one ‌quarter of Russia's total refining capacity, according to data and sources who spoke on condition of anonymity. The combined share of the refineries in Russia's fuel output is over 30% for gasoline and about 25% for diesel.

Russia's energy ⁠ministry ​did not reply to ⁠a request for comment. Ukraine has stepped up drone attacks on Russia's energy infrastructure, doubling the number of oil refineries targeted since ⁠the start of the year, according to various posts on social media by Russian officials.

The strikes, which ​have also hit pipelines and storage facilities, have reduced Russia's oil output - the world's third-largest ⁠after the U.S. and Saudi Arabia - adding pressure to Moscow's federal budget, where oil and gas taxes account for roughly ⁠a ​quarter of revenue. Among the targeted oil refineries are Kirishi in western Russia, Moscow oil refinery as well as plants in Nizhny Novgorod on the Volga river, Ryazan and Yaroslavl.

One of ⁠Russia's largest refineries, Kirishi, with capacity of 20 million metric tons per year, has been fully ⁠shut since May 5, ⁠according to the sources. Another major refinery, Nizhegorodnefteorgsintez (NORSI), with annual capacity of 17 million tons, was attacked on May 20. It remains unclear whether NORSI ‌has been able ‌to maintain partial operations.

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