Explosions were reported on Monday, October 20th at oil refineries in Romania and Hungary.
In Romania, a blast occurred around noon at the Petrotel-Lukoil refinery in Ploiești, southern Romania. According to Világgazdaság, the facility is owned by a subsidiary of Russian Lukoil and was shut down due to a scheduled technical inspection on October 17th. One worker, 57, suffered serious leg and head injuries and was hospitalized in intensive care.
“It is not yet clear what happened, no scenario can be ruled out,” Világgazdaság reported. While technical failure or human error are possible explanations, the incident occurs amid the ongoing war in Ukraine. Due to intensifying Russian and Ukrainian military operations specifically targeting energy infrastructure in recent weeks, authorities note that some kind of “organized action” cannot be ruled out.
The facility is one of the largest in Romania, with an annual processing capacity of 2.5 million tons.
Separately, a fire broke out at Hungarian oil giant MOL’s Százhalombatta oil refinery in Hungary. Local residents reported hearing an explosion and seeing heavy smoke. Firefighters quickly contained the fire, and no injuries were reported, with authorities investigating the incident. Unlike the Romanian facility, the Hungarian refinery is not Russian-owned.
Other recent incidents affecting energy facilities in the region include a drone attack on Russia’s Novokuybyshevsk refinery, which halted primary crude oil processing.
