Following drone attacks in Tuapse, more than half of the refinery’s storage tanks have been put out of action
A significant portion of the tank farm at the Tuapse Oil Refinery in the Krasnodar Krai has been damaged or destroyed following drone attacks. These conclusions were reached by the authors of the Telegram channel Exilenova+, who published satellite images of the facility on 26 April.
According to their data, the damage affected pumping stations, a railway oil loading rack, as well as process pipelines and piping assemblies.
Experts note that even without direct hits on the processing facilities, such damage significantly limits the capacity to receive, store and ship oil and petroleum products, which affects the plant’s operational efficiency.
The Ukrainian OSINT project ‘Oko Gora ✙ News and Analysis’ claims that 24 storage tanks have been destroyed, accounting for 52 per cent, with a further four tanks damaged, or 9 per cent. According to these estimates, 61 per cent of the storage tanks will be out of service in the near future.
The first strike on the facility was recorded on 16 April, with the second taking place on 20 April. The Krasnodar Krai Operational Headquarters reported one fatality and two injuries as a result of the attack.
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine confirmed the strike on the oil refinery, which is located near the port. The statement noted that the tank farm had been hit, leading to a subsequent fire on the site.
Smoke from the burning oil products spread for hundreds of kilometres along the Black Sea coast. It was observed in neighbouring settlements, and satellite images showed the plume reaching the Stavropol Krai.
Since 2022, the Ukrainian Armed Forces have attacked the Tuapse oil refinery at least nine times. The current strikes on oil transhipment ports have reduced the volume of Russian oil exports by sea to its lowest levels since the summer of 2024.
