Russia's key oil export terminal hit again

2026-03-29 15:37:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

A major Russian oil export terminal has been hit again by drones, local officials have confirmed, as Ukraine claims its attacks have severely limited Russia's capacity to benefit from rising global energy prices.

The Ust-Luga center, on the southern shores of the Gulf of Finland, near St. Petersburg, was damaged and set on fire in the March 29 attacks, regional governor Aleksandr Drozdenko said.

He did not identify the location from which the drone was launched and Ukraine has not claimed responsibility, but the Russian Defense Ministry said Ukraine launched more than 345 drones overnight toward Russia.

This is at least the second time Ust-Luga has been hit in a matter of days. Satellite images from March 27 show smoke and flames billowing from the center.

Primorsk, another major export terminal on the northern shores of the bay, was also hit a week ago.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who is on a trip to the Middle East – and is pushing to advance Kiev's drone warfare capabilities – said on March 28 that about 40 percent of export capacity at Ust Luga had been severely hit.

He has said that Ukraine will stop targeting Russian facilities if Moscow stops hitting Ukrainian energy infrastructure, which was badly damaged in the winter.

With access to the Baltic Sea, Primorsk and Ust-Luga are two of the largest terminals for exporting Russian oil to Western markets. Last week, Reuters reported that the Ukrainian campaign may have knocked out 40 percent of Russia's total export capacity.

Even the large Druzhba gas pipeline, which runs through Ukrainian territory, has not been operational for several months.

"This is the most serious threat to Russian oil exports and Russian products since the start of the war," said energy analyst Boris Aronshtein.

Russia, on the other hand, has continued to attack Ukraine, launching more than 400 drones and missiles at various centers of the country, Ukrainian officials have announced.

Dozens of people have been injured in the Kharkiv region, according to authorities.

In the Odessa region, drones have hit an energy facility, causing power outages in many nearby towns, according to emergency teams.

The war in Ukraine began on February 24, 2022.

Russian President Vladimir Putin calls the war a "special military operation" to demilitarize Ukraine.

The West has responded to Russia by hitting the country's economy with harsh sanctions.

As a result of the war, thousands of people have died and millions more have been displaced from their homes. /REL