Ukrainian drones hit major Russian refinery in Kstovo, causing fire and major damage
Ukrainian Defence Forces drones attacked the LUKOIL-Nizhny Novgorod Petrochemical Plant in Kstovo, Russia's Nizhny Novgorod region, overnight into 1 November. The strike caused a fire and significant damage, according to regional governor Gleb Nikitin. He reported no casualties.
Key points
- The attack on the LUKOIL-Nizhny Novgorod Petrochemical Plant occurred overnight into 1 November.
- A fire broke out on the refinery grounds, with the preliminary epicentre near the AVT-5 and AVT-6 primary-processing units and a vacuum residue cracking unit.
- Nizhny Novgorod Governor Gleb Nikitin reported significant damage but no casualties.
- The refinery's estimated capacity is 15–17 million tonnes of oil per year, or roughly 340,000 barrels per day.
- Before the full-scale war, the plant ranked fourth among Russian refineries by processing volume and second by automobile gasoline production.
- Nikitin said more than 100 drones were destroyed during the attack, while Russia's Defence Ministry claimed 235 drones were shot down across 17 regions.
- The same Kstovo refinery was attacked by drones on 26 August.
Why it matters
The target is one of Russia's largest oil refineries and ranked fourth nationally by processing volume before the full-scale war. Its products include gasoline, diesel, aviation fuel, fuel oil, bitumen and lubricants. The attack caused significant damage and a fire at a major industrial facility, although Russian authorities reported no casualties.
What happened
Ukrainian Defence Forces drones attacked the LUKOIL-Nizhny Novgorod Petrochemical Plant, also known as the NORSI refinery, in Kstovo overnight into 1 November. Local residents reported explosions and the operation of air defences, while videos of a large fire appeared around 04:00. The plant's location in Nizhny Novgorod region was placed under a drone alert at 01:01 Moscow time. Nikitin reported significant damage to the industrial facility but no casualties, and said more than 100 drones had been destroyed. Preliminary reports placed the fire near the AVT-5 and AVT-6 primary-processing units and the vacuum residue cracking unit; other reports also identified unit 35/11-600 as a possible impact site. Monitoring channels separately reported a possible attack on the nearby Novogorkovskaya thermal power plant.
How Ukrainian sources describe it
Ukrainian coverage identifies the aircraft as belonging to the Defence Forces of Ukraine and stresses the refinery's scale, range of products and significance for Russia's industrial base. Reporting focused on the fire, possible impact locations and the number of drones Russian regional authorities said had been destroyed.
Where reporting differs
Published estimates of the refinery's annual processing capacity differ: some reports put it at approximately 15–17 million tonnes of oil, while others cite approximately 17 million tonnes.
Background
The LUKOIL-Nizhny Novgorod Petrochemical Plant, also known as NORSI, is one of Russia's largest refineries. Before the full-scale war, it ranked fourth among Russian refineries by processing volume and second by automobile gasoline production. Ukrainian drones also attacked the Kstovo refinery on 26 August.