Ukraine has claimed responsibility for a long-range drone attack on a major Russian oil refinery in the Volgograd region, marking the second strike on the facility in less than three months. The refinery, one of Russia’s largest in the Southern Federal District, processes over 15 million tons of crude oil annually — around 5.6% of the country’s total refining capacity. Russian officials did not confirm the refinery’s name, but the regional governor acknowledged that drones had ignited a fire at an industrial site.
The Ukrainian General Staff stated that the strike was part of a broader campaign to weaken Moscow’s financial and military capabilities by targeting its energy infrastructure. Over recent months, both sides have escalated attacks on critical power and fuel facilities, intensifying efforts to cripple each other’s supply lines as diplomatic attempts to end the conflict have stalled. Ukrainian officials argue that hitting Russia’s refineries directly limits its ability to fund and sustain the ongoing invasion.
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Meanwhile, Russia has continued its own aerial assaults on Ukraine’s energy grid, reportedly using large waves of drones to damage power plants and transmission lines. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy praised local repair teams and emergency workers for restoring electricity after repeated strikes. He noted that attacks were occurring “daily” across frontline regions, warning that Moscow was attempting to “weaponize winter” by cutting off heat and power supplies for civilians.
Ukraine also launched additional strikes targeting Russian-occupied territories, including three fuel and lubricant storage sites in Crimea and a drone assembly base in eastern Donetsk. In Russia’s Kostroma region, authorities confirmed damage to unspecified “energy infrastructure facilities,” though local power supplies remained stable. Unverified reports suggested that a hydroelectric plant may have been among the targets.
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The Russian Defense Ministry later claimed to have intercepted 75 Ukrainian drones overnight across multiple regions, including annexed Crimea. In retaliation, Moscow’s forces attacked the Ukrainian city of Kamianske in the Dnipropetrovsk region, injuring eight people and damaging a residential building. Ukrainian railway services also reported disruptions in Kharkiv, Dnipropetrovsk, and Zaporizhzhia after Russian attacks, while Ukraine’s air force confirmed that Russia launched a total of 135 drones in overnight raids.