Ukrainian Drones Strike Key Units at Syzran Oil Refinery

Ukrainian drones struck key facilities at the Syzran Oil Refinery, which is part of the Russian company Rosneft.

This was discovered jointly by the monitoring platform Exilenova+ and the OSINT channel world.militares.

Damage was reported to two existing atmospheric-vacuum oil distillation units—AVT-5 and AVT-6.

They are intended for the initial distillation of crude oil and its separation into basic fractions (gasoline, kerosene, and diesel) for the subsequent production of fuel.

The 43-102 catalytic cracking unit (Unit II), which converts heavy oil fractions into lighter ones, including gasoline and gas components, was struck.

Ukrainian drones struck the PGI-DIG/280 unit, designed for the production of a high-octane gasoline component, and the L-35/11-600 unit, which is used for the catalytic reforming of gasoline fractions and the production of high-octane components. The drones also struck the CAS unit – a processing and stabilization facility for hydrocarbon streams.

In addition, a smokestack was reported to have fallen onto the L-35/11-600 unit after being struck by a drone. It fell directly onto the equipment, which likely caused damage to it.

Consequently, the damage affected the primary and secondary oil refining facilities, as well as the production of high-octane fuel components.

This is the second similar strike on a Russian oil refinery in August. This time, Ukrainian Defense Forces targeted not just a single primary processing unit but the entire production chain of the facility.

The first was the Orsknefteorgsintez oil refinery.

Strike on the Syzran Oil Refinery

The attack on the oil refinery in Syzran took place on the night of August 7–8 as part of efforts to reduce Russia’s military and economic capabilities. The strike caused several fires on the refinery grounds. Local residents reported several dozen explosions.

The refinery is part of the Rosneft Oil company and has a technical capacity of processing between 8.5 and 8.9 million tons of oil per year, which accounts for more than 3% of Russia’s total output. Its products include automotive gasoline, K5/Euro-5 diesel fuel, jet fuel, fuel oil, and bitumen.

The facility is located more than 800 kilometers from the Ukrainian border. The refinery supplies fuel to Russia’s Samara, Saratov, and Penza regions, as well as parts of the country’s central regions. It also supplies fuel to airfields and military units of Russia’s Central and Southern Military Districts. The complex has been targeted by Ukrainian attacks before.