Black Sea oil logistics hit
Ukraine intensified strikes on Russian energy infrastructure linked to Black Sea exports, briefly disrupting loadings at the Sheskharis oil terminal in Novorossiysk. Reports say the terminal suspended operations after the attack before later resuming, a clear push to make Russian oil logistics less secure and more costly. ( )
Ukraine’s latest long-range strikes reached Russia’s main Black Sea oil outlet at Novorossiysk, forcing the Sheskharis terminal to halt crude loadings for several days before limited operations resumed. (usnews.com; bloomberg.com) The attack hit overnight on April 5-6, and Ukraine’s General Staff said on April 6 that its forces struck oil infrastructure at the Sheskharis terminal and caused a large fire. Krasnodar governor Veniamin Kondratyev said Novorossiysk was under a “massive” drone attack that night. (ukrinform.net; straitstimes.com) Reuters reported on April 7 that Sheskharis had suspended exports after the strike and fire. The terminal typically loads about 700,000 barrels of crude a day and is Russia’s main oil outlet on the Black Sea. (usnews.com) Novorossiysk matters because it is Russia’s largest port and the anchor of its southern oil export system. Sheskharis handles Russian crude through the Transneft pipeline network, while the nearby Caspian Pipeline Consortium terminal ships mostly Kazakh oil. (en.ptport.ru; tankermap.com) Russia said the same wave of attacks also damaged the Caspian Pipeline Consortium marine terminal, including a single-point mooring, loading equipment and four storage tanks. Reuters said that terminal handles about 1.5% of global oil supply. (straitstimes.com; usnews.com) Kazakhstan moved quickly to separate its export route from the disruption. Its energy ministry said on April 7 that shipments through the Caspian Pipeline Consortium were stable after Russia reported the attack. (msn.com) The strike fits a broader Ukrainian campaign against Russian energy assets that finance the war and move fuel to market. Reuters noted that an earlier attack in early March also shut Sheskharis loadings for five days. (en.usm.media; msn.com) By April 10, crude loadings had restarted at Novorossiysk, but reports described the recovery as limited rather than full. That leaves the same point Ukraine targeted still operating under tighter constraints and higher risk. (bloomberg.com; oilprice.com)
