Ukrainian uncrewed boats destroyed one of the Caspian Pipeline Consortium’s (CPC) berths in a morning attack on November 29, the company’s press service said.
One of the offshore mooring systems (SPM-2) sustained “significant” damage. As a result, oil loading at the port was suspended:
“Under an order issued by the captain of the Port of Novorossiysk, loading and other operations were halted, and tankers were moved outside CPC’s waters. No injuries were reported among CPC personnel or contractors,” the statement said.
The nature of the damage was not specified, but the company said that “further operation of SPM-2 is not possible.” It also said that no oil spill was initially detected.
The press release described the November 29 attack as at least the “third act of aggression against an entirely civilian facility.”
The consortium said the offshore mooring unit sustained major damage and is beyond repair.
The captain of the Port of Novorossiysk ordered all cargo and other operations to stop, and tankers were moved outside CPC’s waters. No consortium personnel were injured.
CPC’s press service also said that, preliminarily, no oil entered the Black Sea after the blast. At the moment of the mooring system explosion, emergency protection systems shut the relevant pipelines.
Further operation of the damaged Marine Terminal unit is impossible. Loadings at the terminal will resume in line with established procedures once the threat from drones and uncrewed boats is lifted, CPC added.
Andriy Kovalenko, head of the Center for Countering Disinformation at Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, also said sea drones destroyed one of CPC’s three oil jetties near Novorossiysk.
Earlier, in the early hours of Saturday, November 29, explosions were heard in Russia’s Krasnodar region following a drone attack. The strike hit the Afipsky oil refinery, sparking a large fire at the facility.
On February 17, Ukrainian drones struck CPC’s largest oil pumping station in Russia - Kropotkinskaya. In September, the company’s office came under attack, and two terminals at the key Black Sea oil port also suspended operations.
