Ukraine Drone Strike Halts Russia’s Perm Oil Refinery Deep in Urals

Ukraine’s drone strike on Russia’s Perm region halted operations at the Lukoil-operated refinery after fires and equipment damage. Primary processing units were shut down, with repairs expected to take weeks. The attack is part of Kyiv’s ongoing campaign against Russian oil infrastructure to weaken war funding. Make us preferred on Google Flip Share Facebook X (Twitter) LinkedIn Bluesky Email Copy Copied USF’s 1st unit carried out the attack on the Lukoil refinery with an unspecified number of drones. (Photo by Telegram channel/ASTRA) Content Share Facebook X (Twitter) LinkedIn Bluesky Email Copy Copied Flip Make us preferred on Google Russia’s Perm oil refinery has fully stopped processing after a Ukrainian drone attack on May 7 triggered a fire and damaged key equipment, two industry sources told Reuters . Perm, located in the Ural Mountains, lies far beyond the frontline and is considered one of the deeper-range targets hit by Ukrainian drones since the start of the full-scale war. Follow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official . The strike , which local officials said hit an “industrial facility” in Russia’s Perm region about 1,460 kilometres east of Moscow, forced the shutdown of primary processing units and disrupted operations at one of the country’s major fuel producers. According to industry sources, three primary crude distillation units were taken offline immediately after the attack, while additional secondary units were also halted. One of the key units had already been idle since a previous drone strike on April 30, compounding the disruption. Repairs are expected to take weeks, the sources said. Lukoil, which owns the facility, did not comment. The Perm refinery processed around 12.6 million tons of crude oil in 2024 – about 250,000 barrels per day – producing gasoline, diesel, coke, and fuel oil, making it one of the country’s significant refining hubs. Robert “Magyar” Brovdi, the commander of Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces (USF), confirmed the strike on Thursday afternoon. In a Facebook  update , Brovdi said the USF’s 1st unit carried out the attack on the Lukoil refinery with an unspecified number of drones. Other Topics of Interest An Insider’s Look at Ukraine’s DefTech Gold Rush Ukraine is becoming a force to be reckoned with in the world of warfighting weapons production. The full-scale invasion has taught all those invovled in defense technology many lessons, and Ukraine, in order to survive, has had to learn and adapt more quickly than anyone else. Many aspects of production remain underappreciated. “Lukoil’s oil tanker in Perm was inspected on the night of May 6-7 by the Freedom-loving Ukrainian Birds of the 1st SBS unit for the remains of tanks, taps, and other units for pumping oil and its processing,” Brovdi wrote. Defense outlet  Militarnyi  said Ukraine used the Antonov An-196 “Liutyi” (fiery) long-range drone in the attack, though the model has not been disclosed in official reports. Ukraine’s defense ministry said it  struck 14 refineries  in Russia throughout April, including the  Bashneft-Novoil refinery in Ufa  (Republic of Bashkortostan), located about 1,400 km (870 miles) from the Ukrainian border, and the  Lukoil-Nizhegorodnefteorgsintez refinery  in Kstovo (Nizhny Novgorod Oblast), roughly 800 km (497 miles) from the border. Kyiv said the goal is to curb Russia’s oil revenue, as global fuel prices surge due to supply disruptions from the war in Iran. President Volodymyr Zelensky said the damage to Russian oil  amounted to $7 billion  thus far in 2026 The head of Ukraine’s Presidential Office previously hinted that the refinery strikes  help consolidate Kyiv’s positions  in peace talks with Moscow. Kyiv Post is unable to independently assess the damage and output levels at various Russian oil facilities after the recent attacks. Kyiv Post is Ukraine’s first and oldest English news organization since 1995. Its international market reach of 97% outside of Ukraine makes it truly Ukraine’s Global – and most reliable – Voice.