Oil pumping stations in Volgograd and Samara stop work after Ukrainian drone attack, SBU source says
Ukrainian long-range drones struck a series of oil pumping stations in Russia overnight on Sept. 19, resulting in a shutdown of pumping, a source in Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) told the Kyiv Independent.
The attack was carried out by the SBU and Ukraine's Special Operations Forces (SSO), the source said, hitting pumping stations along the Kuibyshev-Tikhoretsk oil pipeline, which are involved in the export of oil through the port of Novorossiysk.
The stations hit were in Volgograd and Samara oblasts, the source added.
"The SBU continues its successful work on introducing drone sanctions against Russian refineries and oil pumping stations," the source said. "It is this infrastructure that brings petrodollar surpluses to the Russian budget, which fuel the war against Ukraine. Work on blocking these money flows will continue."
Earlier in the day, Ukraine's General Staff confirmed that an SBU and SSO had struck oil transit infrastructure in Samara Oblast, as part of a larger overnight attack that also hit Ukrainian oil refineries in Samara and Saratov oblasts.
Social media posts from residents in Russia appeared to show images of a drone hitting a refinery, as well as explosions and fires in the area.
Ukraine has continued to escalate its campaign against Russian oil and gas infrastructure, a key source of Moscow's revenues helping to fuel its all-out invasion of Ukraine.
