Russia's Tuapse oil refinery attacked for fifth time: video of massive fire

In the early hours of March 14, a fire broke out at the Tuapse oil refinery in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, following an apparent strike, according to local authorities.

Sergei Boiko, head of the Tuapse municipal district, reported that a tank caught fire at 2:07 a.m., though he offered no explanation for the ignition.

Krasnodar Governor Veniamin Kondratyev added that the blaze spanned over 1,000 square meters.

As of this report, Russia’s Defense Ministry had not commented on a potential drone assault overnight.

This marks the fifth attack on the Tuapse refinery, a key Black Sea coast facility and one of Russia’s top ten by capacity.

Previous strikes hit on January 25, 2024, May 17, 2024, July 22, 2024, and February 26, 2025.

Owned by Rosneft, the export-focused plant processes 12 million tons of Siberian Light crude annually, producing naphtha, fuel oil, vacuum gasoil, and 0.7% sulfur diesel for markets like Turkiye and China.

On March 11, a record number of UAVs struck, with Ukrainian forces targeting the Moscow refinery and the Stalnoy Kon ("Steel Horse") plant in Oryol Oblast.

The next night, March 12, explosions rocked Tula and Oryol, though Russia’s Defense Ministry omitted these from its drone interception tally.

Later that evening and into March 13, Ukraine’s military intelligence drones hit a UAV production site near Kaluga.