Ukrainian military forces have reportedly struck and damaged Russia’s Volgograd oil refinery overnight on 6 November, according to Russian Telegram media channels, as explosions simultaneously rocked multiple Russian energy sites across the country.
The refinery, operated by Lukoil and located approximately 450 kilometres from the front line, plays a key role in supplying fuel to the Russian military and has been previously targeted by Ukrainian strikes, which forced it to halt production on at least one prior occasion. Local residents reported explosions and observed large-scale flashes in the night sky towards the direction of the industrial complex in Volgograd Oblast’s Krasnoarmeysky district, documenting the reported work of Russian air defence.
Volgograd Oblast Governor Andrey Bocharov acknowledged a fire had broken out in the industrial zone and confirmed that a civilian had been killed in the wider drone attack on the region. The governor reported that a 48-year-old man died as a result of shrapnel from the shelling, with a residential building and several homes sustaining damage in the assault. Volgograd is situated about 354 kilometres from Ukraine’s eastern border with Russia.
The attacks were not limited to Volgograd; reports also emerged of a thermal power plant in Volgorechensk, Kostroma Oblast, being rocked by blasts. Volgorechensk is located a significant distance from the border, approximately 744 kilometres from Ukraine’s northeastern border and 275 kilometres northeast of Moscow. Furthermore, the Crimean WindTelegram channel reported that a Russian oil depot in Bitumne, near Simferopol in occupied Crimea, was also struck during the night’s operations.
Ukraine routinely launches deep strikes against military and industrial facilities within Russia, primarily utilising domestically developed drones.
