Ukrainian Drones Strike Afipsky Oil Refinery and Energy Facilities in Oryol, Causing Power Outages

During the night of Wednesday, January 21, Ukrainian drones carried out attacks on the Afipsky oil refinery in Russia’s Krasnodar Krai, as well as on energy infrastructure in the Russian city of Oryol.

The Telegram channel Astra reported the incident.

Shortly after the strikes, residents of Oryol took to social media to report partial power outages across the city.

Meanwhile, local authorities reported “minor” damage to the region’s fuel and energy infrastructure.

“Hostile attacks on our region are ongoing, as a result of which minor damage has been inflicted on the fuel and energy infrastructure,” the governor of Russia’s Oryol region claimed.

According to him, there were no casualties, and disruptions to electricity and water supply affected “some buildings” in two districts of the city.

Videos recorded by witnesses capture a sound resembling a jet engine, suggesting the use of jet-powered drones in the attack.

Later that night, the so-called operational headquarters of Russia’s Krasnodar Krai also reported a drone attack on the Afipsky oil refinery.

In line with the usual narrative of Russian officials, authorities said that “drone debris fell,” sparking a fire that was quickly brought under
control.

They claimed that there was no damage to infrastructure and no casualties. Emergency services remain on site.

Ukrainian drone strikes have repeatedly targeted the Afipsky oil refinery. In particular, on November 29 last year, a fire broke out at the facility, covering an area of about 250 square meters. The blaze damaged part of the Russian enterprise’s technical equipment.

The refinery has an annual processing capacity of 6.25 million tons, accounting for more than 2% of Russia’s total oil refining output. The facility plays a vital role in supplying diesel fuel to the Russian economy and military.