CNN
—
Ukraine on Saturday claimed it attacked one of Russia’s largest oil refineries with a drone strike, sparking a fire at the facility more than 1,100 miles inside Russian territory.
Lieutenant Andriy Kovalenko said the attack on the Taneko refinery in the city of Nizhnekamsk in the Republic of Tatarstan, one of Russia’s largest and most modern, was the latest attack on the facility by Ukrainian forces within a year. said it was the second time. Director of the Ukrainian Center for Combating Disinformation.
Social media images geolocated by CNN appear to show massive flames and smoke against a dark sky as workers trudge through the snow evacuating the burning building.
Despite the footage, the Tatarstan press denied there was a fire at the factory, instead conducting a mock evacuation as a safety drill, and images of the glowing facility actually “showed a fire.” he claimed. This is how a factory torch works. ”
The Taneko refinery has the capacity to refine more than 16 million tons of oil per year and “plays an important role in the supply of fuel to the Russian military,” said Kovalenko, the Ukrainian official.
“The destruction of refineries and oil depots has a direct impact on Russia’s ability to wage a violent war,” he added.
Kovalenko said the refinery was also attacked in spring 2024, damaging primary processing equipment.
Last April, Ukrainian drone attacks in Tatarstan targeted both the Shahed drone assembly factory and the primary oil refining unit of the refinery, one of Russia’s five largest facilities, sources said. he told CNN at the time.
The attack in April last year was the furthest Ukraine had penetrated into Russian territory since the start of the war.
