What happened

Ukrainian long-range drones struck the Lukoil-Permnefteorgsintez refinery in Perm on the morning of 21 August. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy acknowledged the strike, while Associated Press reported that eyewitness footage analysed by the independent Russian outlet Astra showed the refinery ablaze; local officials confirmed damage at an unidentified industrial facility. Thick smoke was visible over the plant. Perm Krai's drone alert remained active for more than two hours, and Rosaviatsia temporarily restricted arrivals and departures at Bolshoye Savino Airport for aviation safety during the attack. Reuters subsequently reported from two industry sources that the refinery stopped operations after fire and damage to technological units. The primary CDU-4 unit, which can process about 14,000 tonnes per day and represents almost 40% of capacity, was halted; repairs were preliminarily estimated at one to two weeks. CDU-5, another 34% of capacity, had already been idle since the separate 29 July strike. The refinery is more than 1,600 kilometres from Ukraine and processed about 12.6 million tonnes of crude in 2024. This is the refinery's fourth reported strike of 2026, following the separate 30 April, 7 May and 29 July incidents already recorded on the map.

When cited sources give different casualty, damage or spill figures for this event, they’re reported side by side above rather than merged into one number. See how confidence levels work.