Nigeria TV Info

Russia’s Oil Refining Drops Just 3% Despite Intensified Ukrainian Drone Strikes

Russia’s oil refining capacity has fallen by only 3% this year despite Ukraine launching its largest and most sustained drone campaign yet, according to industry sources and newly compiled production data.

Ukraine has increased long-range drone attacks deep inside Russian territory throughout 2025, targeting oil refineries, storage depots, and key pipeline infrastructure in an effort to weaken Moscow’s revenue streams for the war in Ukraine. Most of the strikes occurred in early 2025 and then resumed from August, hitting at least 17 major refineries and forcing Russia to restrict fuel exports while reinforcing its air defense systems.

During the height of the second wave of strikes — between August and October — up to 20% of Russia’s refining capacity was temporarily taken offline due to damage and scheduled maintenance, according to calculations based on information from three anonymous Russian industry insiders.

Despite this, Russia managed to limit the overall decline. Refining output dropped only 6% during that peak period to around 5.1 million barrels per day, compared to the same months in the previous year. For the broader period between January and October, total oil processing stood at about 220 million metric tons (5.2 million barrels per day), representing a 3% decrease from 2024.

Industry sources said Russian refiners avoided steeper losses by utilising spare units in both affected and unaffected plants and rapidly repairing damaged facilities. Many refineries had been operating below maximum capacity before the attacks, providing operators with flexibility to compensate when strikes disrupted operations.

Russia’s total refining capacity is estimated at 6.6 million barrels per day, though it is rarely used at full capacity — a factor that helped soften the impact of Ukraine’s increased drone offensive.