In the early hours of Thursday, November 20, explosions again rocked Ryazan. Video published on the ASTRA Telegram channel shows large flames and thick smoke. Residents reported a major fire at the Ryazan Oil Refinery, owned by Rosneft. According to the outlet, this is at least the eighth attack on the plant since the start of 2025.
Overnight, several energy facilities in the Kursk region also came under aerial attack, according to regional head Alexander Khinshtein. “As a result of the attack, more than 16,000 people in the Glushkovsky, Rylsky and Korenevsky districts were left without electricity,” the governor said, without specifying how many or which facilities were hit.
The Ryazan refinery is one of Russia’s largest. It can process up to 17 million tons of crude a year, producing gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, fuel oil, liquefied gases, bitumen and petrochemical feedstocks.
After one of the strikes in August 2025, the refinery cut output roughly in half - two main units (CDU-3 and CDU-4) were taken offline. Industry sources say that following the November 15 attack, the plant completely halted intake of crude: the primary distillation unit has been shut down through the end of the month.
The cumulative effect of Ukraine’s strikes on Russia’s refining capacity is increasingly evident: experts say several key refineries have been knocked out, reducing Moscow’s ability to process oil for domestic and military needs.
Strikes on oil infrastructure are part of Ukraine’s strategic campaign to limit Russia’s economic and logistical capabilities. Reduced refinery throughput could threaten domestic fuel supplies and military logistics.
The repeated attacks on the Ryazan refinery underscore the evolution of Ukraine’s tactics: the strikes target not only military sites but also infrastructure critical to Russia’s economy and essential services. If the current trend continues, it could have long-term implications for Russia’s fuel stability.
