One machine handles 52% of a Russian oil plant—Ukrainian drones just hit it

Ukrainian FP-1 drones targeted ELOU-AVT-7, the largest crude unit at the TANECO oil plant, according to satellite images shared by OSINT project Dnipro Osint. This unit processes 9.2 million tons of oil annually, accounting for roughly 52% of the plant's total refining capacity. Losing this facility could result in the plant's inability to process over half of its crude supply.

TANECO, owned by Tatneft, is one of Russia's largest and most modern refineries. The plant has been a significant target for Ukraine's deep-strike campaign, which has shifted from setting refinery fires that Russia can easily repair to attacking distillation units that are crucial for maintaining oil flow. Kaspersky's industrial-monitoring study highlighted ELOU-AVT-7 as the plant's most complex and important section.

The strike occurred overnight on September 13, part of Ukraine's escalating campaign against Russian fuel production. Drones have previously targeted the Nizhnekamsk plant on August 20, among several raids on the Tatarstan cluster throughout the summer. These attacks have led to fires that the plant was initially able to control, but the latest strike hit the unit responsible for most of its throughput.

TANECO, which came online in 2010 and 2011, has the capacity to process more than 16 million tons of crude each year, producing gasoline, diesel, aviation fuel, base oils, and marine fuel. Ukraine has been targeting refineries outside the border for months, causing plants to go offline and curtail Russia's fuel output. The Nizhnekamsk facility houses two major refineries, TANECO and TAIF-NK, both of which have been repeatedly attacked this year. TAIF-NK, the city's second refinery, processes up to 8.5 million tons annually.