A Ukrainian drone strike has forced the Saratov Oil Refinery—a major facility in southwestern Saratov Oblast owned by state-run Rosneft—to halt crude oil intake, Bloomberg reports, citing people familiar with the matter.
The 10 August attack triggered explosions and a fire on-site, abruptly halting operations at a plant capable of processing around 140,000 barrels of crude per day. Analysts warn that if the shutdown persists, Russia’s domestic gasoline supplies could face pressure just as seasonal demand climbs.
Escalation before high-stakes Alaska talks
The strike comes just five days before a planned 15 August summit in Alaska between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin. The White House has said the meeting could expand into a trilateral peace negotiation if Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy attends, though Kyiv’s participation remains uncertain.
Despite the diplomatic push, fighting has intensified. Both sides are exchanging waves of drones and missiles, with Ukraine stepping up strikes deep inside Russian territory while Russia continues to bombard Ukrainian cities.
Part of a wider campaign against Russian energy infrastructure
The Saratov facility is the latest in a string of Ukrainian drone attacks on Russian refineries this month. On 2 August, strikes disabled the Ryazan and Novokuybyshevsk refineries. Five days later, Ukraine targeted the Afipsky refinery in the Krasnodar Krai, followed by a reported strike on a plant in Russia’s Komi Republic, some 2,000 kilometers from Ukraine.
The Saratov plant’s position along the Volga River makes it a strategic hub for both regional fuel distribution and exports—raising the stakes of its prolonged closure.
