Russia's Ust-Luga port sustained further damage from a Ukrainian drone attack overnight on March 29, as Kyiv continues to target Russian oil export infrastructure on the Baltic coast, Leningrad region Governor Alexander Drozdenko confirmed via Telegram.
Air defenses shot down 31 drones during the attack. Emergency services were deployed to contain a fire at the port. Loadings at Ust-Luga had already been halted since Wednesday following significant damage sustained in an earlier strike, with operations yet to resume.
The nearby port of Primorsk has also sustained damage in recent attacks. Together, Primorsk and Ust-Luga handled approximately 45% of Russia's seaborne crude exports (around 1.72 million barrels per day) prior to the disruption, according to shipment data reviewed by Bloomberg.
The twin port outages threaten to offset a potential revenue windfall for Moscow from elevated oil prices driven by the Iran war. The price surge had offered Russia an opportunity to partially offset a widening budget deficit as its economy slows.
The strikes form part of Ukraine's sustained campaign against Russian energy and industrial infrastructure, aimed at curtailing petroleum revenues funding the ongoing invasion. Russia conducted a reciprocal drone attack overnight, injuring eight people in Ukraine's Mykolaiv region, according to regional authorities.
Damage assessment at Ust-Luga is ongoing. No resumption date for loadings has been announced.
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