Drones suspend operation of fuel complex in Ust-Luga for several weeks - Reuters
The fire in Ust-Luga suspended the operation of the complex for several weeks (Photo: Rosmedia)
The Russian company Novatek will most likely resume extensive operations at its processing complex in Ust-Luga and the terminal in the Baltic Sea within a few weeks after the drone attack, according to Reuters.
Novatek announced on January 21 that it had to suspend some operations at the huge fuel unloading terminal in the Baltic Sea and the technological process at the complex due to a fire. Drones of the Security Service of Ukraine (SSU) were reported to be involved in the attack.
The newspaper Kommersant also reported that two reservoirs and a pumping station were damaged due to the incident.
"We believe the plant is likely to return to significant capacity within weeks or, at worst, months," emphasize analysts from the Moscow-based BCS brokerage.
The complex receives gas condensate, a type of light oil, for processing about 7 million tons per year from the Purovsky plant in Western Siberia for further production of oil products such as oil, aviation fuel, and diesel.
Analysts also say that Novatek will now have to export more gas condensate instead of high-margin fuel through other terminals.
Investment bank Sberbank said that Novatek's revenues could be affected by a quarter due to the incident.
Oil exports
Russia exported a record volume of oil used to produce petrochemical products, which ultimately turn into plastics and polyester fibers, to Asia after the European Union imposed an embargo on Russian oil products in February.
According to LSEG data, in 2023, 5.2 million tons of oil were sent from the Ust-Luga port, where several export points for raw materials are located, to Asia, of which 2.8 million tons came from Novatek's terminal.
Drone attack
On the night of January 21, an explosion occurred in the area of the oil terminal of the Maritime Trade Port in the town of Ust-Luga, the Leningrad region.
According to RBC-Ukraine, the explosions and, as a result, the fire at the maritime terminal in the town of Ust-Luga in the Leningrad region took place as a result of a special operation by the SSU.
