Russian drones carried out a massive attack on the port infrastructure of Chornomorsk on the night of May 3, as a result of which the oil transshipment terminal of the agricultural holding Kernel suffered significant damage, the company’s press service reported on Monday.
“As a result of direct hits, oil storage tanks were destroyed and damaged. This led to a spill of over 1,100 tons of product. The leak was quickly contained — the oil did not reach the sea, and there is no environmental threat,” the statement said.
The strike triggered a large-scale fire, which was promptly extinguished. Fire and UAV debris damaged equipment, office premises, logistics infrastructure, and four railway tank cars. Due to significant destruction, the facility has temporarily suspended receiving and shipping operations. One employee sustained moderate injuries and received medical assistance.
“Despite the temporary loss of operational capacity at the Chornomorsk terminal, the company is ensuring the fulfillment of export contracts and uninterrupted deliveries to customers. To achieve this, Kernel is using partner port terminals in Odessa and on the Danube, as well as land logistics, including rail transport,” the agribusiness said. Assessment of the damage is currently ongoing.
As reported earlier, Kernel’s assets have repeatedly been targeted by Russian attacks — since the start of the full-scale invasion, the company’s infrastructure has been struck more than 10 times. As of March 2026, total losses were estimated at around $135 million. The current strike on the oil terminal in Chornomorsk is one of the most severe due to the intensity of the attack and the volume of lost product.
Grain terminals in Odessa and Chornomorsk, as well as assets of the Danube cluster in Reni, were also hit. The most severe damage occurred in July 2023 after Russia withdrew from the “grain deal,” when a series of attacks disabled a significant part of the equipment. The company has also reported damage to elevators and warehouses in northern and eastern regions of Ukraine.
Kernel is Ukraine’s largest agricultural exporter. In 2025, the company accounted for 10% of the country’s foreign currency earnings from commodity exports. In the 2025 financial year, it supplied 8 million tons of Ukrainian agricultural products to international markets. The company’s share of global sunflower oil exports is 10%.
