Extinguishing Fire at Russian Volgograd Oil Refinery After Drone Attack

Russian authorities announced the extinguishing of a fire that broke out at the Volgograd oil refinery in the south of the country on Saturday following a drone attack. Russia and Ukraine are exchanging attacks on energy infrastructure in a bid to disrupt supply lines and weaken morale as they seek an advantage in a conflict that has been ongoing for nearly two years with no end in sight. Russia's energy infrastructure has also been affected by technical failures last month, adding to the uncertainty in global oil and gas markets already shaken by the conflict in the Middle East. Andrey Bocharov, the governor of Volgograd, stated via the local administration's Telegram channel that the incident did not result in any injuries. He explained, "As a result of the downing of a drone, a fire broke out at the Volgograd oil refinery. Firefighting and rescue teams began working quickly, and the fire was brought under control immediately. There were no injuries." The Volgograd refinery is owned by Lukoil, the oil-producing company, and is situated on the Volga River, with a capacity to process 14.8 million tons (about 300,000 barrels per day) of crude oil annually. Operations at another Lukoil-owned oil refinery, Norsi, were disrupted last month. Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak stated that repairs at the refinery would take at least a month to a month and a half.