Ukrainian drones struck Russia’s Primorsk oil port on the Baltic Sea, igniting a fuel tank and causing a fire at one of the country’s key export hubs, regional officials and Ukrainian military authorities said Monday.
“A fuel tank was damaged, causing a fire. Firefighting efforts are underway, and personnel have been evacuated,” Leningrad Oblast Governor Alexander Drozdenko wrote on Telegram.
In a statement, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine confirmed it had “struck key fuel and energy infrastructure facilities in the Russian Federation,” including the Primorsk facility. It said preliminary information indicates that both the tank farm and oil loading infrastructure were hit.
Footage circulating online showed flames and thick black smoke rising from the terminal, with fires appearing to spread across multiple fuel storage tanks.
Ukraine attacked Russia’s largest oil port in the Baltic Sea to prevent it from benefiting from rising oil prices: about 60% of Russia’s maritime oil exports pass through the port of Primorsk. pic.twitter.com/M2ghU0o6i1
— Open Source Intel (@Osint613) March 23, 2026
🇺🇦🇷🇺 Massive Ukrainian drone strikes blew up vast areas of the Port of Primorsk, Russia’s largest oil export terminal that processes 1.0-1.5 million barrels/day – 100 million tons of oil & oil products per year. — 1,000km from Ukraine. — Igor Sushko pic.twitter.com/uLXSwBTSvx
— The Daily News (@DailyNewsJustIn) March 23, 2026
The facility, located roughly 50 kilometers (30 miles) from Finland, is one of Russia’s largest oil export terminals and a key outlet for crude oil and diesel shipments.
According to Russian media, the port handles about 1 million barrels of oil and 300,000 barrels of diesel per day.
“About 60 million tons of oil pass through the port of Primorsk annually. Revenues from oil sales are used by the aggressor country to continue the war against Ukraine and to support the Russian occupation army,” the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said.
Meanwhile, Ukraine also claimed separate strikes on an oil refinery in Ufa, in central Russia about 1,400 kilometers (870 miles) from the front line, saying it caused “a fire on the facility’s grounds.”
The Ukrainian attack is the most recent in a series of drone strikes targeting Russian energy infrastructure deep inside the country. Primorsk was previously hit in September 2025, when drones disrupted loading operations for several days.
The strike came as Russia continued its own aerial campaign against Ukraine. Ukraine’s air force said Russia launched 251 drones overnight, 234 of which were shot down.
