Russia ramps up anti-aircraft defense at oil refineries amidst Ukrainian strikes
6:55 PM EDT, March 20, 2024
Russians respond to attacks on their energy infrastructure. Following successful operations in which Ukrainians targeted and damaged oil refineries among other facilities, Russia has decided to utilize anti-aircraft systems for protection.
The Russian Ministry of Energy announced last Tuesday that essential energy sites, including oil refineries, will now be shielded by anti-aircraft defenses. This move comes as a reaction to the escalating Ukrainian assaults on such infrastructure, as Reuters reported.
Artiom Verkhov, the director of the gas industry development department at the Ministry of Energy, proposed during a meeting of the Russian parliament the deployment of Pantsir anti-aircraft missile systems to safeguard the refineries. Verkhov also mentioned that the Ministry plans to collaborate with the National Guard forces, known as Rosgvardia, in this endeavor, according to Reuters.
In the past week, Ukrainian military intelligence (HUR) and the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) confirmed their involvement in strikes on refineries across various locations in Russia. Targets included facilities in Slavyansk in Krasnodar Krai, Novoshakhtinsk in Rostov Oblast, and others in Ryazan, Kstovo in the Nizhny Novgorod region, and Kirishi in Leningrad Oblast. The Russian and Ukrainian media have also covered raids on refineries in Syzran and Novokuibyshevsk in the Samara region, and a fire near a thermal power plant in Saint Petersburg.
Attacks on Russian infrastructure lead to losses
The attacks on refineries are causing financial damage in Russia. However, it's important to highlight that these actions also place a strain on the Ukrainian military. As Der Spiegel reports, Ukrainian military leaders acknowledge the need to conserve ammunition, thus limiting their ability to strike specific targets effectively.
Early in March, there were also accounts of drone strikes on key industrial sites critical to the Russian defense sector. Affected locations include the Mikhailovsky Mining and Processing Plant in Zheleznogorsk in the Kursk Oblast, and the metallurgical plants of the Severstal group in Cherepovets in the Vologda Oblast.
Reuters estimates that the drone attacks in the first quarter of 2024 reduced the operational capacities of Russian refineries by approximately 4.6 million tonnes of crude oil, or an average of 370,500 barrels per day. This represents a reduction of about 7 percent in the processing capacity of all the country's plants.
