Russia uses reserve refinery capacity to mitigate impact of Ukraine attacks - Reuters
Illustrative photo: since August 2025, Ukraine has struck Russian refineries 58 times (Russian media)
Russia has been forced to use reserve capacities at its oil refineries due to Ukrainian drone strikes. Thanks to this measure, despite numerous attacks, refinery output in Russia has only slightly decreased, Reuters reports.
Ukrainian long-range drone attacks at the beginning of 2025 and from August onward disabled at least 20% of Russia’s refinery capacities. At least 17 refineries were hit. However, sources told the outlet that overall, the strikes caused only a 6% drop in Russian oil refining output.
The reason, according to sources, is that Russian refineries were not operating at full capacity. By activating reserve capacities and repairing what could be fixed, they managed to mitigate the impact of the attacks on infrastructure.
Russia’s total oil refining capacity is estimated at 6.6 million barrels per day, though sources say it is rarely fully used. Total refinery output in Russia in October was 5.1 million barrels per day, 300,000 barrels less than before.
Consequences of the refinery strikes
Despite the Kremlin's claims of market stability, the reality is that Ukrainian strikes have had a significant impact. Russian oil revenues have fallen below last year’s levels.
Since early 2025, in the first quarter, Ukrainian drones targeted six major Russian refineries: Ryazan, Volgograd, Saratov, Tuapse, Ufa, and Astrakhan. From August to the end of October 2025, there were 58 recorded strikes on Russia’s oil infrastructure. The furthest strike occurred 2,000 kilometers from the Ukrainian border.
Another problem for Russia is obtaining spare parts for refinery equipment from Western countries. Russian companies claim they have found ways to produce equipment domestically or import it from China, a Russian ally.
However, due to the shady import schemes, repairs to damaged refineries are delayed. As a result, it remains unclear how long reserve capacities will be able to keep Russian refineries operational.
Strikes on Russian refineries: latest updates
Earlier reports confirmed that on November 11, unknown drones attacked a refinery in Orsk, Orenburg region, Russia, located 1,500 km from the Ukrainian border. This was later confirmed by the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces and the Security Service of Ukraine.
Previously, the Security Service of Ukraine, together with other security and defense forces, struck an oil terminal in the Russian port of Tuapse.
Recently, two refineries – a petrochemical plant in Bashkiria and the Nizhny Novgorod refinery – halted operations after drone attacks. On November 6, Russia’s Volgograd refinery also stopped operations after a drone strike.
