Rosneft's Ryazan oil refinery hit by drone attack

Russia's Ryazan refinery became the latest target of Ukrainian drone strikes March 13, in an apparent escalation of cross-border attacks ahead of presidential elections later this week.

According to unconfirmed local media reports and market sources, a primary processing unit at the 17.1 million mt/year (342,000 b/d) plant, which is owned by state-controlled Rosneft, has been affected.

Pavel Malkov, governor of the Ryazan region, confirmed via Telegram that a fire had broken out at the site, although he did not give any indication of the damage sustained. Russian media reported that a fire in an area of around 175 square meters had now been extinguished.

The attacks come after a strike on Russia's Norsi refinery halted a processing unit March 12, in a move set to dent production at a key gasoline outlet.

Russia's Defense Ministry said March 13 that 58 drones were downed in the latest wave of attacks, which also targeted the Kirishi and Novoshakhtinsky refineries.

Operations have been suspended at the 112,000 b/d Novoshakhtinsky refinery in southern Russia after debris from downed drones fell on the plant, the regional governor Vassilyy Golbyov said March 13.

Novoshakhtinsky, a small export-oriented refinery located near the Black Sea, was taken partially offline in the summer of 2022 following a fire after a drone attack.

There was no reported impact at the Kirishi plant.

Domestic pressure

The Ryazan refinery, located around 200 km to the southeast of Moscow, is a key supplier to Russia's domestic fuels market and one of the country's largest plants. The refinery was previously targeted by a drone in May last year, according to Russian media, but had so far avoided damage in the latest wave of strikes by Ukraine.

The latest attacks have exacerbated existing fuel supply concerns and have already pushed up product prices on the St. Petersburg Exchange, which could be a sensitive issue ahead of Russia's presidential elections set for March 15-17. On Feb. 27, the government announced it would implement a six-month ban on gasoline exports in a move to shore up domestic supplies.

While domestic gasoline prices have previously proved relatively unresponsive to the government export ban, a renewed Ukrainian offensive is expected to add pressure ahead of the upcoming peak demand season.

With Russian refinery throughput already down 7% since the start of the year, according to the Russian government in February, the new wave of attacks adds pressure to domestic refining capacity ahead of upcoming maintenance.

Already, Western sanctions have delayed maintenance periods as refineries have struggled to source key parts, sources have said, suggesting that unplanned downtime due to the attacks could be extended.