Russian officials report drone strikes on St Petersburg oil sites; one dead

Russian officials said overnight drone strikes hit St Petersburg and surrounding areas on Sunday, October 18, setting fires at the Petersburg Oil Terminal, the Ruchi oil depot and other sites. Governor Alexander Beglov said one person was killed and five were injured, figures reported independently by the [Associated Press](https://apnews.com/article/f813d3725b8b5f23958a68a95729fd0d) and [El País](https://elpais.com/internacional/2026-10-18/ucrania-lanza-un-intenso-ataque-sobre-san-petersburgo-y-golpea-una-terminal-petrolera-un-centro-de-datos-y-un-centro-logistico.html). Ozon said its St Petersburg logistics center caught fire; VK said a data center in the Leningrad region was attacked, while its services remained available. Russia’s Defense Ministry said air defenses intercepted 1,015 Ukrainian drones overnight across 15 regions, Crimea and the Black Sea. That is the ministry’s nationwide claim and has not been independently verified. Leningrad regional governor Alexander Drozdenko separately reported 144 drones downed over his region, according to El País. The figures cover different areas and should not be added together. The [Petersburg Oil Terminal](https://www.oilterminal.ru/en/company/) describes itself as a Baltic hub for liquid-product storage and shipping, with an annual capacity of 12.5 million tonnes. That scale helps explain why damage could matter for energy logistics, but capacity is not the amount of output lost in this incident. As of Sunday morning, officials had published no estimate of the damage, operational disruption or export impact. VK said its services continued normally, and Ozon had not detailed the effect on deliveries. The strikes come amid continued attacks on energy infrastructure and uncertainty over the energy pause announced by President Donald Trump on October 11. The Associated Press reported that Ukraine resumed attacks on Russian oil targets after a three-day pause, while Kyiv said Russian strikes on its energy sector continued. The reports reviewed do not establish a jointly monitored ceasefire or say how long the St Petersburg facilities may be affected. ~worldnews ~russia ~ukraine ~energy