Russian Retaliatory Strike Hits Ukrainian Sunflower Oil Terminal

On Saturday, Russian forces attacked a sunflower seed oil terminal in the Odesa region of Ukraine, causing extensive damage. It is the latest in a series of Russian attacks targeting Ukraine's commercial export infrastructure, including bridges, port facilities, electrical grid systems and foreign-flag merchant ships.

The latest strike hit the Allseeds sunflower oil terminal in Pivdennyi, a deepwater port complex just east of Odesa. Allseeds Switzerland, the parent company, told Keystone-ATS that thousands of tonnes of oil were destroyed. It was the third attack on the site in a week, and the eighth since the start of the full-scale invasion in 2022.

“For the moment, we’re trying to put the fire out. There is also a lot of damage to neighboring stocks,” Allseeds Switzerland president Kees Vrins told Keystone-ATS. Three tanks remained on fire, he said.

According to the State Emergency Service of Ukraine, a Russian missile strike killed a total of eight people and injured 27 more at port sites near Odesa on Saturday. Some of the injured people were on a bus that happened to be near an impact site, and multiple trucks and cars were also damaged in a nearby parking lot.

The Allseeds plant produces and exports vegetable oil and vegetable meal at Pivdennyi, with a capacity of 2,200 tonnes per day for processing and up to 100,000 tonnes of oil storage. It also a transshipment point for other producers' oilseed cargoes.

Ukraine sees the terminal as a strategic asset for its export-oriented agricultural sector. "'Allseeds Black Sea' exemplifies the resilience of Ukrainian agribusiness, which, despite repeated missile attacks, continues to ensure food security, sustain the economy, and expand market access for domestic products," said Minister of Agrarian Policy Vitaliy Koval in a statement earlier this year.