MOSCOW, March 25 (Reuters) – Russia’s Baltic ports of Primorsk and Ust-Luga, major export terminals, suspended crude oil and oil products loadings on Wednesday after massive Ukrainian drone attacks sparked a blaze which could be seen from Finland, two sources told Reuters.
The drone attacks on the Baltic ports amount to one of the largest strikes to date against Russia’s oil export facilities in the four-year war, and are likely to add to the uncertainty on the global oil markets amid the conflict in the Middle East.
Massive plumes of black smoke billowed far into the sky on Wednesday, according to unverified videos posted on Telegram. The smoke could even be spotted dozens of miles away across the Gulf of Finland, according to the Helsingin Sanomat newspaper.
Earlier on Wednesday Russian officials said a fire broke out at Ust-Luga, after a Ukrainian drone attack. Neighbouring Primorsk has also been attacked in recent days.
Ukraine has stepped up drone attacks on Russian oil refineries and export routes over recent weeks in an attempt to weaken Russia’s war economy and as the peace talks, brokered by Washington, have stalled.
Ust-Luga and Primorsk, on the Gulf of Finland, were also forced to suspend exports of oil and crude on Sunday after drone attacks but they had tentatively restarted loadings on Monday, Reuters reported.
Primorsk, which is able to export more than 1 million barrels of crude oil per day, is a major outlet for Russia’s flagship Urals crude and high-quality diesel.
According to sources, Ust-Luga exported 32.9 million metric tons of oil products last year, and Primorsk 16.8 million tons.
Alexander Drozdenko, the governor of the northern Leningrad region, said on Wednesday that a fire had broken out at Ust-Luga after a Ukrainian drone attack across the region. No casualties were reported.
A source who spoke on condition of anonymity told Reuters that the terminal had been sealed off and that reservoirs were ablaze.
Russia’s defence ministry said that 389 Ukrainian drones had been shot down across Russia overnight, including over the Moscow region.
(Reporting by Reuters; aditional reporting by Anne Kauranen in Helsinki; Editing by Guy Faulconbridge, William Maclean)
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