Ukraine strikes oil facility in western Russia in overnight drone attack, Kyiv confirms
Ukrainian drones struck a major oil pumping station in Russia's Bryansk Oblast overnight on Aug. 13, according to the Ukrainian military and the Kyiv Independent's source in the military intelligence agency (HUR).
The news comes as Ukraine escalates long-range drone strikes against Russian oil facilities, with the Russian oil industry being a key source of revenue that helps fund Moscow's aggression in Ukraine.
Ukrainian drones targeted the Unecha oil pumping station, part of the Transneft Druzhba pipeline network, sparking a large fire, the intelligence source told the Kyiv Independent.
The facility is one of the largest nodes in the Druzhba system, which spans about 9,000 kilometers (5,600 miles) and is used to supply Russia's defense industry. The operation was carried out in coordination with Ukraine's Armed Forces, the source said.
Ukraine's General Staff separately confirmed the attack, saying the Unecha station facilitates the transport for two pipelines with an annual capacity of 60 million metric tons.
"Damage and a large fire were recorded in the area of the support pumping station building," the military said, adding that explosions near oil tanks were also reported.
Unecha lies roughly 60 kilometers (35 miles) from the Russia-Ukraine border.
Russia's Defense Ministry said its air defenses intercepted and destroyed 46 Ukrainian fixed-wing drones across multiple regions overnight.
According to the ministry, 15 drones were downed over Bryansk Oblast, 11 over Volgograd Oblast, seven over Rostov Oblast, five over Krasnodar Krai, two each over the Belgorod and Voronezh oblasts, two over Russian-occupied Crimea, and two over the Sea of Azov.
In Krasnodar Krai, drone debris fell on the territory of a refinery in Slavyansk-on-Kuban, igniting a truck, regional authorities said. There were no casualties reported.
Independent Russian outlet Astra reported, citing local residents, that other suspected strikes occurred near oil facilities, including in Volgograd. Debris from a drone fell onto the roof of a 16-story apartment building in Volgograd, prompting an evacuation, Astra reported.
The building is located in a district where the Lukoil-Volgogradneftepererabotka, one of Russia's largest oil refineries, has previously been targeted.
In Belgorod, a civilian facility was hit by a Ukrainian drone, Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov claimed. No casualties were reported. The blast reportedly caused a fire, damaged windows, and damaged the building's facade.
The Kyiv Independent could not verify the claims.
