Ukrainian Drone Swarm Strikes Key Russian Oil Refinery in Samara

Dozens of Ukrainian drones targeted industrial facilities in Russia’s Samara Oblast overnight on Tuesday, damaging civilian infrastructure and reportedly setting fire to a major Rosneft oil refinery.

Samara Governor Vyacheslav Fedorishchev said the drones targeted industrial enterprises and that private homes and vehicles were also damaged. He did not report casualties.

Astra, citing eyewitness footage, identified the target in Samara as the Kuibyshev oil refinery, one of the region’s largest. A major fire broke out at the facility following the attack.

The refinery, owned by Russian state oil giant Rosneft, has a nominal annual capacity of 7 million metric tons (7.7 million US tons) of crude. In 2024, it processed 4.7 million metric tons (5.8 million US tons) of crude, producing around 800,000 metric tons (882,000 US tons) of gasoline, 1.4 million metric tons (1.5 million US tons) of diesel, and 1.3 million metric tons (1.4 million US tons) of fuel oil.

The facility was previously targeted by Ukrainian drones in June. Reuters, citing industry sources, reported that at the time, the refinery had temporarily suspended processing following the attack.

The Samara strike comes amid an intensifying Ukrainian campaign targeting Russia’s oil-refining infrastructure.

Ukraine has struck Russian refineries more than 70 times since the start of 2026, according to the report. Several dozen facilities have been forced to halt operations, while six major refineries were reportedly undergoing repairs in August.

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Overnight attacks also damaged homes and a clinic in Lipetsk, while Russian officials reported dozens of drones downed over Tula and Voronezh regions.

EA Analytics said disruptions had pushed Russian oil refining to its lowest level since 2002. The decline has contributed to fuel shortages and prompted Moscow to restrict fuel exports.

On Monday, US President Donald Trump said that repeated Ukrainian attacks had knocked out a significant portion of Russia’s refining capacity, claiming Moscow had “lost control” of diesel production.

However, Trump has repeatedly urged President Volodymyr Zelensky to stop attacks on Russian oil facilities.

Zelensky said Kyiv was prepared for de-escalation but argued that any halt to strikes on Russian refineries should be matched by an end to Russian attacks on Ukraine’s energy system and critical infrastructure.