In brief

• A night drone attack on Volgograd's southern industrial zone on 13 November started fires and reportedly hit Lukoil's refinery.
• Four workers were reported killed and two hospitalised, according to the regional governor.
• Ukraine's General Staff claimed damage to several refining units and storage tanks, which Russian authorities have not confirmed.

Attack and fire

The Volgograd regional governor, Andrey Bocharov, said drone debris fell on an enterprise in the southern industrial zone of the city overnight, causing local fires (Генштаб подтвердил поражение Волгоградского НПЗ: повреждены шесть резервуаров – NV). Initially he said there were no casualties, but later reported that four employees of the industrial zone had died and two more were hospitalised («Одна из ключевых "бензоколонок" российской армии». Украина подтвердила удар по НПЗ в Волгограде – Zerkalo). Regional authorities did not name the facility.

Refinery identified

The Ukrainian General Staff said it struck the Volgograd refinery operated by Lukoil-Volgogradneftepererabotka, which it described as having capacity of about 15 million tonnes of crude a year (В ВСУ подтвердили удар по НПЗ в Волгограде – TV Rain). Ukrainian military claimed the plant produces petrol, diesel and aviation fuel, and that fires broke out on site (Генштаб розповів про наслідки ураження ключової "бензоколонки" армії РФ – Українська правда). Monitoring channels and the outlet ASTRA, relying on photos from witnesses, also identified the refinery as the burning site (Эксперты стали говорить о бензиновом кризисе тяжелее прежнего – The Bell).

Damage claimed

Ukraine's General Staff listed damage to primary crude distillation units AVT-1, AVT-3, AVT-5 and AVT-6, a hydrotreating unit, a loading rail rack and six 2,000 cubic-metre tanks. These details come from the Ukrainian military and have not been confirmed by Russian authorities.

Wider context

The Insider counted at least four full halts of refining at the plant in 2026 so far, following drone strikes (Atak dronów trwał, a mieszkańcy Wołgogradu zaczęli szturmować stacje benzynowe – Rzeczpospolita). The Bell reported that the refinery was hit again within two weeks, and that ten Russian refineries had been attacked since a pause in strikes ended on 30 October; it said Ukrainian channels claimed two primary units supplying about 70% of capacity were out, a claim it did not confirm (Волгоградский НПЗ снова атаковали дроны. С начала года завод уже четырежды останавливал переработку нефти – The Insider).

Other damage

In Svetly Yar, a settlement in the region, windows and balcony glazing were damaged on three five-storey residential buildings and a youth centre, according to Bocharov. No local residents were reported injured.

Read also

• Drone attack sets fire at Lukoil's Kstovo refinery; Nizhny Novgorod imposes petrol limits
• Drones Strike Kirishi Refinery in Leningrad Region, Fire Reported at KINEF
• Drones Strike Ufa Refinery Zone; Fire Reported at Bashneft-Novoil