Drones Attack Wildberries Logistics Hub and Oil Refinery in Volgograd

On the night of July 31, drones attacked a logistics center belonging to the Russian online marketplace Wildberries and an oil refinery in Volgograd, sparking fires at both sites.

According to Exilenova+ and Astra, which published videos from the scene, the attacks triggered the blazes.

Volgograd region Governor Andrey Bocharov also confirmed fires at a fuel and energy industry facility in southern Volgograd, as well as at warehouse buildings.

He said the fires were caused by UAV strikes but did not specify which facilities had been targeted.

This morning, Wildberries officially confirmed an attack and a fire at its logistics center in Volgograd.

“Preliminarily, there are no reported casualties. Our logistics chains have been reconfigured, and the acceptance of supplier deliveries and the shipment of customer orders are being handled through other facilities,” the company said in a statement.

The 44,000-square-meter warehouse complex is a key logistics hub serving the Volgograd and Astrakhan regions, as well as neighboring areas.

Volgograd Oil Refinery

In addition, local residents reported overnight that drones had struck the Lukoil-Volgogradneftepererabotka oil refinery.

It is the largest producer of petroleum products in Russia’s Southern Federal District and the country’s seventh-largest oil refinery by processing capacity. The facility has a design capacity of 15.7 million metric tons of crude oil per year.

The refinery specializes in deep crude oil processing and produces gasoline, diesel fuel, aviation fuel, fuel oil, bitumen, and other petroleum products. Since the start of the full-scale war, the facility has been targeted by Ukrainian drones on multiple occasions, including in late May.

Ukrainian long-range drone strikes have put more than 30% of Russia’s operational oil refining capacity and 45% of its nominal refining capacity out of service.

Strikes on oil refining and petroleum storage facilities have triggered Russia’s worst fuel crisis since the collapse of the Soviet Union, forcing the authorities to impose restrictions on fuel sales.