Drones attack Novorossiysk terminal; tanker catches fire
The tanker was attacked by a drone while loading oil at the CPC terminal.
On July 20, drones attacked the sea terminal of the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) near Novorossiysk. The tanker NELSA, flying the flag of Cameroon, which was loading at the time, was damaged. A drone hit the stern, causing a fire on the deck and compartments of the tanker. 22 crew members were evacuated; the captain and the chief officer remained on the ship.
«The fire was extinguished within a few hours by the tanker»s loading crews and emergency response teams on CPC vessels. Oil loading has been suspended,« the company reported.
CPC separately stated that the oil in the tanker did not catch fire and that no petroleum products entered the sea. The vessel remained afloat.
Recall that yesterday, July 19, two tankers were also attacked at the CPC sea port, with no casualties.
CPC was registered in Novorossiysk in 1997 and is engaged in oil transportation via pipelines.
For 2025, the company’s revenue amounted to 173.1 billion rubles (approximately $1.9 billion at current rates), an increase of 4% year-on-year. The main source of revenue (91.7 billion rubles, approximately $1.0 billion at current rates) remains Tengizchevroil, a Kazakh oil-producing company. Net profit, however, decreased by 21%: 89.1 billion rubles (approximately $990 million at current rates) in 2024 vs. 70.8 billion rubles (approximately $787 million at current rates) in 2025. The volume of oil pumped reached 70.5 million tons, up 12% from 2024.
CPC transports oil from three major Kazakh fields: Tengiz, Kashagan, and Karachaganak. Recipients of the oil are EU countries (Italy, France, Greece, Spain), as well as the United States and Asian countries.
Earlier, 93.RU reported that during a drone attack on Krasnodar Krai on July 20, a house caught fire in Adler and windows were blown out in seven houses in Yeysk, where a woman was also injured.
