On 24 September, drones have struck the Gazprom Neftekhim Salavat oil refinery in Russia’s Bashkortostan Oblast for the second time in seven days, with Ukrainian Security Service sources confirming responsibility for the attack.
Ukraine targets Russian oil infrastructure to undermine Moscow’s military logistics by disrupting fuel supplies essential for war operations and to reduce oil export revenues that finance the invasion.
The latest strike targeted the facility located approximately 1,300 kilometers from Ukrainian territory, resulting in fires on the plant grounds and a visible column of black smoke, according to Russian Telegram channels. Local residents in the area reported hearing loud sounds during the incident, Astra reports.
Radiy Khabirov, head of the Bashkortostan republic, confirmed the attack, stating that emergency services were working at the scene to extinguish fires. He described the incident as “another terrorist drone attack” on the facility.
Salavat city administration chief Marat Zagidullin reported no casualties from the strike, saying environmental safety indicators in the city remained within normal parameters and posed no threat to residents.
The previous attack occurred on 18 September, when Ukrainian drones struck what the SBU source described as the plant’s “heart” – the ELOU-AVT-4 processing unit essential for the plant’s operations.
“The SBU continues to deliver targeted strikes on facilities that finance the war against our state,” the Ukrainian intelligence source told Hromadske, adding that “the gas station country must finally realize that aggression against Ukraine costs it very dearly.”