Russia’s Kirishi refinery halts key distillation unit after drone attack

The oil refinery in the town of Kirishi, Leningrad region — one of Russia’s largest — has shut down its most powerful crude distillation unit, CDU-6, following a drone attack and subsequent fire.

Reuters reported this on Monday, October 6, citing industry sources, according to Ukrinform.

According to the agency’s sources, repairs on the CDU-6 unit may take around a month. The shutdown could lead to a slight decrease in oil product output amid Russia’s ongoing fuel shortage, as the refinery is expected to operate at about 70% of its capacity during maintenance. Other units will run above their normal load to partially compensate, the sources said.

The CDU-6 unit has a processing capacity of 8 million metric tons per year, or about 160,000 barrels per day, accounting for roughly 40% of the refinery’s total processing capacity.

The plant, controlled by Surgutneftegaz, is also restoring another key unit damaged during a drone attack in mid-September, the sources added.

In 2024, the refinery processed 17.5 million tons of crude oil, which amounted to 6.6% of Russia's total oil refining volumes. That same year, it produced 2 million tons of gasoline, 7.1 million tons of diesel fuel, 6.1 million tons of fuel oil, and 600,000 tons of bitumen.

As reported by Ukrinform earlier, on the night of Saturday, October 4, a drone attack caused a fire at the Kirishinefteorgsintez (KINEF) refinery in Leningrad region.

Photo: Pixabay