Information on current Russian losses due to sanctions as of 08/09/2026.
1. Ukraine resumed strikes on Russian refineries deep within Russia.
– Ukraine resumed attacks on Russian oil refineries after a four-day pause. On the night of September 8, strikes targeted refineries in Perm Krai and Tatarstan.
– Located in Perm is “LUKOIL-Permnefteorgsintez”, one of Russia’s largest refineries with a capacity of about 260,000 barrels per day. The enterprise belongs to Russia’s largest private oil company “LUKOIL”. The refinery has already been repeatedly attacked by Ukrainian drones.
– In Tatarstan, there are large oil refining and petrochemical enterprises, including TANECO with a capacity of 300,000 barrels per day and the TAIF-NK refinery with a capacity of 145,000 barrels per day.
– Before the new series of strikes, on Sunday, Ukraine attacked the Ryazan refinery — one of Russia’s largest oil refineries. Strikes on Russia’s oil refining infrastructure are already affecting the global fuel market.
– Due to reduced domestic production, Russia has limited diesel fuel exports, increasing pressure on the international market.
2. Ukraine attacked the Saratov refinery “Rosneft” for the fifth time this year.
– Ukrainian drones attacked the Saratov oil refinery “Rosneft” on the night of September 8. Analysis of eyewitness footage shows the refinery was the target of the attack.
– The enterprise was founded in 1934 and has been under “Rosneft” control since 2013. In 2024, the plant processed 5.8 million tons of oil, or 2.2% of Russia’s total oil refining. Annually, the refinery produced 1.2 million tons of automotive gasoline, 1.9 million tons of diesel fuel, and 1 million tons of fuel oil.
– This is the fifth attack on the enterprise since the beginning of 2026. Previous strikes occurred on March 21, May 31, July 8, and August 2.
– Following the attacks, the plant halted oil processing, and after the latest strike, it may require 2–3 weeks to resume operations.
3. Russia spent nearly 10 tons of gold from the NWF to support aviation.
– In August, Russia sold 9.7 tons of gold and 5.7 billion yuan from the National Welfare Fund, according to data from the Ministry of Finance. As of September 1, the NWF retained 131.5 tons of gold and 184 billion yuan.
– Since the beginning of the year, 23.5 tons of gold, or 16% of the reserves available at the start of January, have been sold from the reserve fund. In August, the Russian authorities directed about 190 billion rubles from the NWF — more than during the entire first half of the year. Most of the funds went to support aviation projects.
– Specifically, the NWF invested 115.3 billion rubles in AviaCapital-Service bonds and another 67 billion rubles in Rostec bonds. The funds are intended for the expansion of aircraft, aircraft engines, and components production, as well as for the preferential leasing of Russian aircraft.
– The need for such financing is growing due to a sharp shortage of aircraft in Russia’s civil aviation. The foreign fleet is shrinking faster than Russian industry can produce new units.
– Authorities promised to produce nearly 100 passenger aircraft per year by 2030, but no fully domestic passenger aircraft were delivered in 2025.
– The aviation development program up to 2030, which envisages nearly 1000 aircraft in total, has already been revised multiple times, and the timelines for production launches and deliveries have been systematically postponed.
4. Russia plans to increase oil exports from the Arctic project Vostok Oil.
– In the second half of 2027, they promise to supply about 30 million tons of oil from there, with a potential increase to 100 million tons per year.
– During the tanker Valentin Pikul loading ceremony and the commissioning of the Severnaya Bay terminal, it was announced that new tankers are of the 7th Arctic class. However, in shipping registries, they are listed as vessels of the 6th class.
– There are also questions about the logistics of the declared volumes. To export 30 million tons of oil per year through Severnaya Bay, it is necessary to load 6–8 Aframax class tankers with a capacity of 80,000 to 120,000 barrels each day.
– Currently, neither Rosneft nor the global market has such a number of Arctic-compliant tankers.
– Consequently, the announced plans of Vostok Oil to export tens of millions of tons of oil face serious logistical limitations.
5. The Central Bank of Russia recorded a record “shadow” capital outflow.
– In the second quarter of 2026, $12.2 billion was withdrawn from Russia through operations that could not be classified under standard balance of payments categories. The Central Bank of Russia recorded this amount under the “net errors and omissions” category.
– Compared to the first quarter, when such operations amounted to $1.4 billion, this figure increased 8.7 times and became a record for the entire history of the Central Bank’s statistics, which have been kept since 1994.
– The previous quarterly record for this item was noted in the first quarter of 2009 — $8.3 billion. Thus, the new figure exceeded it by almost 1.5 times.
– In the second quarter, due to “errors and omissions,” every tenth dollar of export revenue, amounting to $125.7 billion, and almost a third of the trade balance surplus — $38.3 billion — effectively disappeared from Russia.
– The article “net errors and omissions” formally indicates statistical discrepancies but can include unaccounted payment transactions and hidden capital outflows. In recent months, Russian billionaires have also been actively transferring funds abroad due to concerns about the state of the economy, the banking system, and the potential confiscation of their assets.
– The transfer destinations mentioned include Cyprus, UAE, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and African countries.
6. “Arctic LNG 2” demands $1 billion from South Korean shipyard over contract termination.
– The Russian project “Arctic LNG 2” has filed a lawsuit against the South Korean shipbuilding company Hanwha Ocean, demanding about $1 billion.
– The reason for the legal dispute was the termination of contracts after the introduction of Western sanctions against Russia. The South Korean shipyard was supposed to build three ice-class LNG carriers with a capacity of 172.5 thousand cubic meters each.
– “Arctic LNG 2” was not the direct customer of the vessels but refers to agreements on the transfer of rights, which allegedly gave the project authority over the initial contracts.
– The LNG carriers were specially ordered to transport LNG from Arctic fields. The main part of the fleet was planned to be built at the Russian shipyard “Zvezda,” with some orders placed at Asian enterprises to accelerate fleet formation.
– Sanctions effectively derailed Russia’s plans to create a full-fledged fleet for exporting LNG from the Arctic, and now the unfulfilled contracts have resulted in multi-billion-dollar legal claims for the project.
7. Hungary expels 10 Russian diplomats.
– Hungary has decided to expel 10 staff members of the Russian diplomatic mission. They are ordered to leave the country due to activities that Budapest considers unacceptable for diplomats according to the Vienna Convention.
– The Hungarian authorities stated that the decision is aimed at protecting the country’s security and sovereignty. At the same time, Budapest does not plan to sever diplomatic relations with Russia and declares its readiness to continue dialogue.
– The Russian Foreign Ministry has already promised to respond to the expulsion of diplomats. The decision is another step by Hungary to enhance its security policy.
– In August, the country officially recognized Russia as a threat to Hungary, Europe, and the world order for the first time and condemned Russian aggression against Ukraine.
– Previously, the Hungarian authorities accused Russian intelligence of attempts to infiltrate EU countries and stated the need to strengthen protection against Russian special services.
