MIKHAILOVSK, Russia — Ukrainian Defense Forces launched coordinated drone strikes against three oil storage facilities in Russia's Stavropol Krai during the night of July 18–19, targeting fuel infrastructure located about 600 kilometers from the Ukrainian border, according to Ukrainian and Russian reports.
The operation was carried out by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) and focused on oil depots in and around the city of Mikhailovsk.
According to the independent Russian Telegram channel Astra, local residents reported hearing gunfire and drones flying overhead before a large explosion and a fire broke out at one of the targeted facilities. Photos and videos shared online showed flames rising from the industrial area.
Stavropol Krai Governor Vladimir Vladimirov confirmed that emergency services responded to the incident. He said firefighters were dealing with two separate fire hotspots in the industrial zone of the Vyazniki settlement, along with a third fire in the northern part of the city of Stavropol. He added that flammable materials were detonating at the affected industrial facilities as crews worked to contain the fires.
Open-source intelligence (OSINT) analysis conducted by Astra, using publicly available photos, videos, and location data, identified the affected sites as several major fuel storage depots.
One of the facilities in the village of Vyazniki is owned by Russia's state-controlled oil company Rosneft. A second fire was reported at an industrial site located at 1 Promyslovaya Street, where the companies Korona and MK-Nefteprodukt operate.
The analysis also indicated that the Stavropol oil depot at 19 Kolomiytseva Street, operated by LUKOIL-Yugnefteprodukt LLC, was among the facilities hit.
According to publicly available information, the LUKOIL-operated depot is a major fuel logistics hub. It contains 42 storage tanks with a combined capacity of approximately 57,600 cubic meters and is used for the receipt, storage, and distribution of automotive gasoline, diesel fuel, and lubricants.
The latest strike marks the third reported Ukrainian drone attack on the LUKOIL-Yugnefteprodukt facility within the past two weeks. The depot was first targeted on July 9, followed by another strike on the night of July 13, which also caused a fire at the site.
The SBU has previously stated that repeated attacks on Russian fuel infrastructure are intended to disrupt fuel supplies supporting Russian military operations and reduce oil revenues that finance the country's war effort.
In a separate incident reported by the Ukrainian military outlet Militarnyi, Ukrainian strike drones also hit an oil depot in Noginsk, in Russia's Moscow region. The facility reportedly contains 24 storage tanks with a combined storage capacity of approximately 11,500 cubic meters.
The attacks on fuel infrastructure coincided with Ukrainian maritime operations in the Black Sea. On the same day, the SBU said its "Mamai" maritime drone struck the Avero, a Suezmax-class tanker that Ukraine says is part of Russia's so-called "shadow fleet." According to the SBU, the vessel was transporting crude oil to countries including China and India in violation of international oil embargo restrictions.
Russian authorities confirmed the fires and the deployment of emergency response teams but did not provide detailed information on the extent of the damage or the operational impact of the strikes. Firefighting operations were continuing at the affected facilities.
——— End of Article ———
