Ukraine Successfully Strikes Moscow Oil Refinery
On the night of September 20, Moscow and the surrounding area were hit by a major attack by Ukrainian drones and missiles. A major fire broke out at the Moscow Oil Refinery in the Kapotnsky District.
The Exilenova+ monitoring Telegram channel is posting videos showing flames and thick smoke rising above the oil refinery. This is one of the largest oil refineries serving Moscow and the surrounding area.
The Moscow Oil Refinery is owned by Gazprom Neft and has an annual processing capacity of about 11 million tons of crude oil. The company is also a major taxpayer in Russia.
According to The Insider, Gazprom Neft paid around 979 billion rubles in taxes in 2025. Revenue from Russia’s oil industry helps finance the federal budget, including spending during the war against Ukraine.
Ukraine has increasingly targeted Russian oil infrastructure in an effort to reduce the revenues supporting Moscow’s war effort.
The International Energy Agency reported that Russian refineries were hit by Ukrainian drones on average once every three days during the first eight months of 2026.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that Ukraine used a variety of long-range drones and missiles during nighttime strikes. These included the FP-1, RZ-100, MICH-2000, Palyanitsya, Vendetta, February, Bars, Flamingo, January, and Pelican.
The full extent of the damage to the Moscow oil refinery has not yet been independently determined.
