Drone attack sets Rostov fuel export terminal ablaze

According to Kyiv Post, the facility, listed in company records as the Rostov branch of the NZNP oil loading terminal, opened in 2009 alongside the refinery's first phase. It is supplied by the Novoshakhtinsk refinery and other producers in the region. Ukrainska Pravda reported that the Russian opposition outlet Astra and Telegram channels shared footage of the fire. Neither of the 2 sources reports a claim of responsibility from Ukraine's General Staff.

Rostov Governor Yuri Slyusar confirmed the attack and the fire and said there were no casualties. He said more than 50 drones were downed over the region between Friday evening and Saturday morning. According to Ukrainska Pravda, the attack also damaged a railway bridge and trains were halted in both directions; Kyiv Post does not report that damage. The number of damaged tanks and how long the terminal will be out of action could not be verified.

The terminal has been targeted before. According to Ukrainska Pravda, the loading terminal near Bataysk was hit on 9 July, and the Novoshakhtinsk refinery's production units were attacked in September. By our calculation, annual capacity of 2.5 million tonnes equals about 208,000 tonnes a month. That is roughly 42% of the 500,000-tonne diesel tranche the Russian government cleared for export on 10 October.