Kyiv targets Russian energy infrastructure in latest strikes

Ukraine’s military said it had carried out overnight strikes on two major oil refineries and a maritime surveillance platform in Russia, as part of efforts to weaken Moscow’s war-fighting capacity.

In a statement, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said: “On the night of August 8, 2026, as part of efforts to reduce Russia’s military-economic potential, units of the Ukrainian Defence Forces struck a number of important enemy targets. In particular, Ilsky Oil Refinery LLC in Russia’s Krasnodar region was hit.”

“Also hit was Syzran Oil Refinery JSC in the city of Syzran, Samara region of the Russian Federation.”

According to the Ukrainian military, the Ilsky refinery operates six processing units with a total annual capacity of around 6.6 million tonnes of oil. The Syzran refinery, part of Rosneft’s oil refining complex, has a capacity of approximately 8.5 million tonnes per year.

The statement added: “In addition, an enemy technical observation post on the self-elevating drilling unit ‘Sivash’ in the Black Sea was struck. The ‘Sivash’ rig is used by the enemy to deploy surveillance equipment and ensure its operation in the Black Sea area.”

Separately, Alexei Cheverev, head of the Seversky district in Russia’s Krasnodar region, said a fire at the Ilsky refinery had been extinguished following “falling UAV debris” on Saturday morning. He added that, according to preliminary information, six people were injured.

By Tamilla Hasanova