Volgograd Gov. Andrei Bocharov said four workers died and two were injured in a drone attack; Astra identified the fire site as Lukoil’s biggest refinery in southern Russia using witness photos.
The Moscow Times reported an earlier attack at the refinery on Oct. 2. It put the plant’s annual crude processing capacity at about 14.8 million metric tons and cited local media accounts of gas station lines and an overnight 50-kopeks-per-liter increase for popular gasoline grades.
Bocharov blamed Ukraine. In an earlier update, he said drone debris had triggered several fires around the industrial zone and that no one had been reported hurt at that point.
Russia’s Defense Ministry said it intercepted 1,198 Ukrainian drones overnight across Russian regions and Crimea. Ukraine’s General Staff said Thursday that its forces struck seven refineries, five among Russia’s largest. The Volgograd refinery was at least the eighth Russian oil refinery struck by Ukrainian forces since Oct. 30, Ukraine’s General Staff said.
