Drone Strike Sets Novorossiysk’s Grushovaya Oil Depot Ablaze

In Novorossiysk, the tank farm of the Grushovaya oil depot caught fire as a result of an attack by strike drones.

Astra reported on this.

The attack took place during the night of June 7–8, 2026. Local residents reported hearing around 50 explosions, after which thick smoke rose above the oil storage facility.

The oil depot serves as a transshipment facility for the Sheskharis terminal operated by JSC Chernomortransneft. It is located in the Grushovaya Balka area beyond the Markotkh Ridge, approximately 12 km (7.5 miles) from Novorossiysk.

The Grushovaya Balka oil depot has a total tank storage capacity of more than 1.2 million cubic meters. The capacity of individual reinforced-concrete and steel storage tanks at the site ranges from 5,000 to 50,000 cubic meters.

The tank farm consists of approximately 40–47 storage tanks.

In addition to photo and video evidence, the strike was confirmed by NASA’s FIRMS monitoring service, which detected thermal anomalies at the oil depot. The service’s satellites recorded elevated heat signatures at 02:48 on June 8 at coordinates 44.751147, 37.873014.

This is not the first attack on the oil depot. Since it is directly linked to the transshipment facilities of the Sheskharis terminal, the site has been targeted on multiple occasions.

Sheskharis is a major oil transshipment complex in the Port of Novorossiysk and serves as the terminal point of major oil pipelines in Russia’s Krasnodar Krai.

On May 23, 2026, Ukrainian strike drones attacked the Grushovaya oil depot. The resulting fire engulfed a significant portion of the facility.

The Grushovaya Balka oil depot was not the only target. On April 6, Ukrainian long-range drones also struck the Sheskharis oil terminal.

The attack damaged critical infrastructure, including systems used to measure the volume and quality of oil, as well as control valves that play a key role in monitoring and regulating oil flows between the terminal’s loading berths.

These systems are essential for commercial oil accounting and the efficient operation of the terminal’s export facilities.