Ukraine steps up attacks on Russian oil industry as Kremlin reaps export windfall

Satellite image ©2026 Vantor

The Ukrainian military has stepped up attacks on Russia’s energy infrastructure, as Moscow benefits from higher crude oil prices and some sanctions relief.

Ukrainian drones have struck several Russian refineries and export terminals in the last week, accelerating a campaign that began last summer to target one of Russia’s biggest revenue sources.

As the war in the Middle East and the surge in crude prices provide a windfall to the Kremlin, Kyiv has redoubled its efforts to hobble Russia’s energy production.

The Ukrainian military claims to have carried out 10 major attacks this month on Russian energy infrastructure – some of the strikes deep inside Russia. The extent of the impact is unclear but Russia has mooted banning gasoline exports.

During a call with journalists on Saturday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told CNN that Ukraine’s long-range drones had become more effective.

The latest strike claimed by the Ukrainian military was early Saturday against a large Russian ⁠oil refinery in Yaroslavl, north-east of ⁠Moscow. The military said there was a direct hit on the refinery, followed by a fire.

Mikhail Evraev, the regional governor in Yaroslavl, acknowledged that several residential buildings and “a commercial facility” had been damaged, but said that more than 30 drones had been neutralized.

The Russian oil export terminal at Ust-Luga on the Baltic coast was attacked twice in the last week. Long-range drones “damaged oil-loading stands and a tank farm containing oil and petroleum products” early Friday, according to the Ukrainian Security Service.

Geolocated video showed a large fire at the port, and the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations warned residents in the nearby city of St. Petersburg of “air pollution” following the attacks.

“We responded to the strike on our energy infrastructure. We responded with a powerful strike, reducing the capabilities of Ust-Luga,” Zelensky told CNN.

“40 percent of their capabilities remained at that facility” after the drone strikes, Zelensky said.

The nearby port of Primorsk was also attacked last week, and according to the Ukrainians fires at both ports were still visible Saturday.

A refinery in Saratov in southern Russia operated by state producer Rosneft was struck last weekend.

Before the Middle East conflict began and the Strait of Hormuz was effectively paralyzed, Russian crude traded at a substantial discount to other benchmarks on global markets.

Now it’s sometimes commanding a premium, according to analysts. Russia has also benefited from the easing of some US sanctions. In an effort to calm oil markets, the US Treasury suspended sanctions on Russian crude already at sea earlier this month.

Zelensky again criticized the sanctions relief on Saturday, claiming that Russian intelligence was helping Iran target locations with satellite imagery.

“By lifting sanctions on the aggressor, who makes money every day, they are passing on relevant information regarding attacks” on allied bases in the region, Zelensky said.

Russia’s state budget relies on oil earnings for at least one-third of its revenue, according to analysts. Those earnings may have doubled over the past month, they say.

As the Ukrainian strikes continue, the Russian government is poised to reintroduce a ban on gasoline exports, according to state news agency TASS.

It said the measure, which would take effect from next Wednesday, April 1, is being discussed by Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak and industry ministries and oil companies.

The government imposed a similar measure last September but lifted the ban in January.

Russian newspaper Kommersant said the ban would be reintroduced because the domestic market was being hurt as producers chased higher earnings from exporting gasoline.

But the paper also acknowledged what it called “unscheduled refinery maintenance” and the fires at Primorsk and Ust-Luga.

Zelensky said Saturday that Ukraine’s attacks were in response to Russian strikes on its power infrastructure, which have caused widespread electricity outages this winter.

“Russia must stop striking our energy infrastructure. We will then not retaliate against it,” he added.

卫星图像 ©2026 Vantor

由于原油价格上涨和部分制裁解除，莫斯科从中受益，乌克兰军方加大了对俄罗斯能源基础设施的袭击力度。

过去一周，乌克兰无人机袭击了俄罗斯的几家炼油厂和出口码头，加速了去年夏天开始的针对俄罗斯最大收入来源之一的行动。

由于中东战争和原油价格飙升给克里姆林宫带来了意外之财，基辅加倍努力削弱俄罗斯的能源生产。

乌克兰军方声称本月对俄罗斯能源基础设施发动了10次重大袭击，其中一些袭击深入俄罗斯境内。袭击的影响程度尚不清楚，但俄罗斯已提出禁止汽油出口的方案。

周六，乌克兰总统泽连斯基在与记者通话时告诉美国有线电视新闻网（CNN），乌克兰的远程无人机变得更加有效。

乌克兰军方声称对周六凌晨发生在莫斯科东北部雅罗斯拉夫尔的一家大型俄罗斯炼油厂发动的袭击负责。军方称，炼油厂遭到直接命中，随后起火。

雅罗斯拉夫尔州州长米哈伊尔·叶夫拉耶夫承认，几栋居民楼和“一处商业设施”遭到破坏，但他表示，30多架无人机已被摧毁。

位于波罗的海沿岸乌斯季卢加的俄罗斯石油出口码头上周两次遭到袭击。乌克兰安全局称，周五清晨，远程无人机“破坏了石油装载平台和存放石油及石油产品的储罐区”。

地理定位视频显示港口发生大火，袭击发生后，俄罗斯紧急情况部警告附近城市圣彼得堡的居民注意“空气污染”。

泽连斯基告诉CNN：“我们对针对我们能源基础设施的袭击做出了回应。我们以强有力的打击予以回击，削弱了乌斯季卢加核电站的作战能力。”

泽连斯基说，无人机袭击后，“他们40%的能力仍然保留在该设施中”。

附近的普里莫尔斯克港上周也遭到袭击，据乌克兰方面称，周六两个港口的火光仍然可见。

上周末，俄罗斯南部萨拉托夫一家由国有石油公司俄罗斯石油公司运营的炼油厂遭到袭击。

在中东冲突爆发、霍尔木兹海峡实际上陷入瘫痪之前，俄罗斯原油在全球市场上的交易价格远低于其他基准价格。

分析人士称，现在俄罗斯原油的价格有时会溢价。俄罗斯也受益于美国部分制裁的放松。为了稳定石油市场，美国财政部本月早些时候暂停了对已在海上运输的俄罗斯原油的制裁。

泽连斯基周六再次批评了制裁解除，声称俄罗斯情报部门正在帮助伊朗利用卫星图像锁定目标地点。

泽连斯基说：“通过解除对每天都在赚钱的侵略者的制裁，他们实际上是在传递有关袭击该地区盟军基地的相关信息。”

分析人士指出，俄罗斯国家预算至少三分之一的收入依赖于石油收入。他们表示，过去一个月里，这些收入可能已经翻了一番。

据俄罗斯塔斯社报道，随着乌克兰的罢工持续进行，俄罗斯政府准备重新实施汽油出口禁令。

声明称，这项措施将于下周三（4月1日）生效，俄罗斯副总理亚历山大·诺瓦克以及各工业部和石油公司正在对此进行讨论。

政府去年9月曾实施过类似措施，但今年1月解除了禁令。

俄罗斯《生意人报》称，由于生产商为了追求更高的汽油出口利润而损害了国内市场，因此将重新实施禁令。

但该报也承认了所谓的“炼油厂计划外维护”以及普里莫尔斯克和乌斯季卢加的火灾。

泽连斯基周六表示，乌克兰的袭击是对俄罗斯袭击其电力基础设施的回应，这些袭击导致今年冬天大范围停电。

“俄罗斯必须停止袭击我们的能源基础设施。否则，我们将不会对其进行报复。”他补充道。