Destruction of critical Moscow refinery units sends Russian fuel market into panic

Ukrainian forces successfully struck the key fuel supplier for Moscow and the surrounding oblast, which accounts for 35-40% of the regional market's needs. The enterprise serves as a strategic hub for powering the critical infrastructure, energy sector, and transport system of the Russian capital. The plant meets 15-20% of the needs of the Moscow aviation hub, which includes the Sheremetyevo, Domodedovo, Vnukovo, and Zhukovsky airports.

The enterprise sells part of its output through Gazprom Neft's own network of gas stations, while the rest goes to traders and is sold via exchange trading or direct contracts with industrial and transport companies. Its logistical location makes Moscow Oil Refinery the main element of fuel stability for the capital region and aviation hubs. What will its shutdown lead to?

Moscow Oil Refinery began operating in 1938 in Kapotnya as cracking plant No. 413 and supplied the USSR's industry with gasoline and diesel fuel for decades.

In 2011, it came under the control of Gazprom Neft — a subsidiary of the state energy giant Gazprom. The new owner initiated a three-stage modernization that continues today, costing around 500 billion rubles ($6.81 billion).

The enterprise receives raw materials through trunk oil pipelines, which deliver oil from Western Siberia and Tatarstan.

In 2022, Transneft connected the plant to the Ring Main Oil Product Pipeline around Moscow. This move allowed the company to increase the intake of petroleum products from Moscow Oil Refinery and boost their supply to consumers.

As part of the project, specialists reactivated a 32-kilometer oil product pipeline to the Volodarskaya linear production and dispatch station. The project's implementation allowed for an increase in fuel supplies: aviation fuel almost doubled (to 3 million tons per year), diesel fuel to 2.8 million tons per year, and motor gasoline to 1.6 million tons per year.

As of early June 2026, Moscow Oil Refinery had a design capacity of 12.15 million tons of oil per year. Its actual refining volumes were about 11 million tons per year. The refining depth reached 75.8%, with the yield of light petroleum products at 56-57%.

The plant produces 80, 92, and 95-octane gasoline, diesel fuel, aviation kerosene, bitumen, sulfur, and polymers. Since 2013, the enterprise has completely transitioned to producing Euro-5 standard fuel.

Supplier for Aviation

Moscow Oil Refinery is a key supplier of aviation kerosene for Moscow airports. The fuel is transported via the Ring Main Oil Product Pipeline, which minimizes logistical delays.

Zhukovsky (Ramenskoye) airfield — a base for test and force aviation — holds separate strategic significance for Russia's defense infrastructure. This facility critically depends on uninterrupted pipeline supplies from the Moscow Oil Refinery. This is confirmed by the restrictions on arriving and departing aircraft introduced at Moscow airports following the attacks.

The operation of the Ostafyevo airfield (Novomoskovsky Administrative District) also depends on the refinery's work. It simultaneously hosts civilian structures, including Gazprom Avia, and military units, including the Federal Protective Service. According to Interfax-Russia, the system includes diversification mechanisms: in the event of emergencies, supplies can be partially redistributed, particularly by connecting the Ryazan Oil Refinery to the Ring Main Oil Product Pipeline. However, this creates an additional burden on the logistics network.

Target for Attack

In 2026, Moscow Oil Refinery suffered a series of strikes that halted critical technological processes. As Reuters reported, citing industry sources, the AVT-6 primary oil refining unit, which accounts for about 53% of the entire plant's capacity, was damaged on June 16. Following this, the enterprise completely suspended oil refining.

The June 18 attack caused new damage at the facility. According to the OSINT projects CyberBoroshno and Dnipro Osint, hits were recorded in several zones, effectively breaking the single technological chain. The failure of AVT-6 blocked the primary preparation of raw materials, while the decommissioning of the G-43-107 unit deprived the plant of the ability to produce high-octane fuel components. 

Destruction of the MTBE unit critically limited the production of Euro-5 standard gasoline, while the failure of the visbreaking unit made further processing of oil residues impossible - the enterprise's operations have been completely halted indefinitely.

What's Next?

According to Reuters, citing industry sources, following the June 16 attack, the refinery's management planned to launch the Euro+ unit — a combined primary refining unit — in the coming days. During the repairs, the plant was supposed to operate at reduced capacity.

Now this process will be delayed. Damage to critical components, particularly the distillation columns of the AVT units, could prolong the repair process for several months. Manufacturing large-scale equipment and subsequent installation takes up to five months. As the experience of similar incidents at other refineries shows, the total duration of unplanned repairs can reach three months.

Compressor equipment often becomes a "bottleneck" for restoration; its failure in catalytic cracking units has previously caused prolonged shutdowns. Technological delays may also arise due to the need for specific grades of catalysts.

Shutdown of Moscow Oil Refinery will lead to a reorientation toward other oil refining assets. The Yaroslavl Oil Refinery (YANOS) is the key alternative source of aviation kerosene and motor fuel for the Moscow region. This plant regularly ships TS-1 grade kerosene. Omsk Oil Refinery will serve as a backup; its fuel will be directed to cover the needs of the Moscow aviation hub.

Strike on Moscow Oil Refinery has destabilized trading on the St. Petersburg International Mercantile Exchange (SPIMEX). Over the past 48 hours, quotations have reacted to reports of critical units being disabled.

The aviation kerosene market reacted the most sharply. Quotations skyrocketed to historical highs  — over 110,000 rubles per ton ($1,500). Market participants acted preemptively, anticipating a physical fuel shortage for the capital's aviation hub.

Prices for 95-octane gasoline behaved more moderately after intervention by the exchange's management. A jump was recorded immediately following the news of the attack, but the trading platform introduced strict limitations, reducing the daily growth limit from 0.1% to 0.01%. This halted the panic: by June 18, quotations had pulled back approximately 2% from their peak values.

According to estimates by Russia's Kommersant, the price jump in the first few days had speculative foundations — the market reacted emotionally to signals about a potential reduction in supplies. Meanwhile, some independent gas stations in Oblast have already begun revising prices at the pump due to rising procurement costs and complicated logistics.