Finance
Ukrainian drones stage new attack on major Russian petrochemical complex
Published by Global Banking and Finance Review
Posted on September 24, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 21, 2026
Global Banking and Finance Review
Company
Published by Global Banking and Finance Review
Posted on September 24, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 21, 2026
Ukrainian drones attacked Russia's Salavat complex, causing significant damage and impacting oil production. This marks another blow to the Russian economy.
MOSCOW (Reuters) -Ukrainian drones attacked one of Russia's largest petrochemical complexes, Salavat in the southern Bashkortostan region, for the second time in less than a week, the local governor said, and two sources said a major unit caught fire.
Ukraine has attacked more than 10 Russian refineries and export terminals over the past two months, some more than 1,000 km (620 miles) from the border, dealing the biggest blow to the Russian economy since the start of the war.
"Gazprom Neftekhim Salavat has been subjected to another terrorist drone attack. We are assessing the extent of the damage. All emergency services are on scene, and firefighting measures are underway," governor Radiy Khabirov said on Telegram on Wednesday.
Two industry sources said the CDU-6 crude distillation unit caught fire after the attack. The unit normally processes around 6 million tons of oil and gas condensate per year, accounting for around 60% of the plant's total production capacity.
The plant's press service declined to comment.
The drones attacked the same complex, controlled by energy giant Gazprom, last week, when, according to the sources, another main unit, CDU-4, was set ablaze.
It was not clear when the units would return to operation.
Russian refining has dropped by almost 20% during some days and exports have fallen too, forcing Russia to consider oil production cuts and limit fuel exports to avoid exacerbating shortages at home.
With peace talks stalled, Ukrainian drones earlier this month also hit an oil refinery in Ufa, Bashkortostan's regional capital, about 1,400 km (870 miles) from the Ukrainian border.
The Salavat petrochemical complex produces gasoline, diesel, kerosene and other petroleum products as well as liquefied gases, butyl alcohols, polyethylene, polystyrene and ammonia.
According to the sources, the plant processed 7.2 million tons of oil in 2024, or around 2.7% of Russia's total oil refining, producing 2.5 million tons of diesel, 1.5 million tons of gasoline and 700,000 tons of fuel oil.
(Reporting by Reuters; Editing by Christopher Cushing, Bernadette Baum, Philippa Fletcher)
A petrochemical complex is an industrial facility where raw materials from petroleum are processed to produce chemicals, plastics, and other products used in various industries.
Oil production refers to the process of extracting crude oil from the earth, which is then refined into various petroleum products such as gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel.
A crude distillation unit is a key component of an oil refinery that separates crude oil into its various fractions based on boiling points.
Drone attacks on oil production facilities can disrupt operations, lead to significant economic losses, and affect global oil supply and prices.
Oil refining capacity indicates the ability of a facility to process crude oil into usable products, impacting supply chains and market prices.
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