Ukraine says it hit Saratov refinery in Russian Volga region

Ukrainian forces say they have once again attacked Rosneft PJSC’s Saratov oil refinery in Russia’s Volga region as the U.S. pushes for a resolution to the Kremlin’s nearly four-year-old invasion of Ukraine.

“A series of explosions was recorded, followed by a fire in the target area,” Ukraine’s General Staff said in a Telegram statement on Friday, adding that the facility is involved in army supplies. The claim could not be independently verified, and Rosneft didn’t immediately respond to a Bloomberg request for comment.

Ukraine has stepped up attacks on Russian energy infrastructure over the past months, targeting refineries, export pipelines and sea terminals to seek to reduce the Kremlin’s oil revenues and its ability to fund the war. If Kyiv’s military forces keep up the strikes before the month ends, November will mark a new peak in the intensity of the campaign to damage Russian refineries.

The strikes are happening as Ukraine is under pressure to agree on a U.S.-led peace deal after an original proposal drew the ire of officials in Kyiv and in Europe. U.S. President Donald Trump earlier this week hailed “tremendous progress” in talks to iron out key issues, while his envoy Steve Witkoff is set to visit Moscow next week to meet with President Vladimir Putin.

The latest raid was the fourth attack on the Saratov refinery this month, according to Bloomberg calculations based on public data and statements. The facility has a design processing capacity of around 140,000 barrels per day.

In total, Russian oil-processing facilities have been hit at least 13 times so far this month, matching a peak in August, Bloomberg calculations show.

Russian military forces, meanwhile, have been relentlessly hitting Ukraine’s infrastructure, including residential buildings and utilities, aiming to create lengthy power outages.

The prospects for achieving a peace deal are still uncertain, with some of the same sticking points that led to stalemates in previous rounds this year.

Putin’s statements on Thursday were vague as he said the U.S. proposals “can form the basis for future agreements,” but there is no final deal on the table. He added that Moscow will stop fighting when Ukraine withdraws troops from areas in the Donetsk region that the Russian army hasn’t been able to take by force.