The North Atlantic Alliance claims that Ukrainian drone strikes on Russia’s oil refining infrastructure have had a significant impact on its fuel market and impose additional financial costs. An Alliance official told journalists on condition of anonymity, European Pravda reports.
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The interlocutor noted that in March Russia significantly increased the import of gasoline from Belarus and introduced a six-month ban on its exports in order to stabilize domestic prices. Moscow also does not rule out an increase in crude oil exports, since it cannot process it in sufficient quantities.
“The strikes likely knocked out more than 10% of Russian oil refining capacity, and possibly more than 15%. And depending on the scale of the damage, repairs could take considerable time and require significant costs,” the NATO official added.
He also noted that some Ukrainian drone strikes were carried out at a distance of more than 1,000 kilometers, highlighting the scale of the attacks .
“I think that in the future, fewer and fewer such Russian energy infrastructure facilities will be protected from potential attacks, and the Russian economy in this area will be increasingly influenced,” the interlocutor concluded.< /p>
Difficulties with repairing oil refineries
According to Reuters, Russian oil companies are experiencing difficulties with repairing oil refineries due to Western sanctions. Moreover, their problems may worsen due to attacks by Ukrainian drones.