Drone Strike Hits Ufa Oil Refinery, Strategic Russian Hub 1,400 km From Ukraine

A series of explosions struck the Ufa oil refinery, one of Russia’s largest, in the early hours of March 3, 2025. The facility, located approximately 1,400 km from Ukraine, caught fire after being hit by unidentified drones, according to Andrii Kovalenko, head of Ukraine’s Center for Countering Disinformation on March 3.

The attack triggered two powerful explosions at the Orgsintez plant, leading to a massive fire. Local residents reported hearing strange noises in the sky before the blasts, which were strong enough to shake parts of the city like an earthquake.

The Ufa refinery complex, which includes Bashneft-UNPZ, Bashneft-Novoyl, and Bashneft-Ufaneftekhim, processes around 20 million tons of oil annually. The facility is strategically important to the Russian military, supplying aviation fuel, diesel for military vehicles, and lubricants essential for Russia’s war machinery.

According to the Ukrainian OSINT analysts, Dnipro Osint, one of the key installations, L-24-7, was directly hit.

Russian media ASTRA reports direct strikes on fuel storage tanks, damaging pipelines, and critical infrastructure. Two 3000-ton vertical steel reservoirs were severely damaged, and a 2000-ton tank reportedly detonated.

The NASA FIRMS satellite system confirmed the intensity of the fire, detecting significant heat anomalies at the site.

So far, Ufa authorities have not commented on the attack. However, Russia’s Emergency Situations Ministry of Bashkortostan stated:

“Firefighters have localized the blaze at the Ufa oil refinery. The fire broke out near a combustion furnace. There is no threat to nearby residents. Air quality monitoring is ongoing.”

Despite these assurances, the scale of destruction suggests a serious blow to Russia’s fuel supply chain.

Earlier, A massive drone attack struck multiple regions of Russia overnight, targeting oil infrastructure and military logistics hubs.

Russia claims interception and destruction of 128 drones, with the largest concentration over the Krasnodar region and occupied Crimea.