Ukrnafta will prioritize the installation of concrete shelters at 13 filling stations in the Kyiv region, Ukrnafta board chairman Bohdan Kukura said on Facebook on Monday.
"UKRNAFTA is installing concrete shelters at filling stations in Kyiv and the Kyiv region. Such structures have already proved their effectiveness in frontline regions. Now we are scaling up this solution to the capital region," he wrote.
According to the CEO, shelters will first be installed at filling stations located in areas with high population density and near major roads. They will be available to anyone in the vicinity.
"Last week we also saw how the protection already installed in Kyiv works. Gabions at one of our filling stations withstood an impact, the explosion was contained and there was no significant spread of fragments," Kukura said, adding that the gabions also helped reduce risks to pedestrians and motorists nearby.
The CEO said UKRNAFTA filling stations suspend operations after a yellow- or red-level air raid alert is declared, with staff and customers leaving the premises and moving to a safe location.
As reported, UKRNAFTA previously began installing gabion protective structures around its filling stations in Kyiv, including along roads and pedestrian paths. In the event of Russian drone strikes on filling station premises, the structures can contain fragments within the perimeter and help reduce the external danger zone.
Ukrnafta is Ukraine's largest oil producer, with operations covering the full oil production cycle, including exploration, oil and gas production, oilfield services, and management of Ukraine's largest network of filling stations under the UKRNAFTA brand.
The company has more than 1,106 oil wells and 131 gas wells on its balance sheet.
The shareholders of Ukrnafta are Naftogaz of Ukraine and the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine. Since 2022, the company has been under state management and is carrying out a large-scale business transformation.
The UKRNAFTA filling station network is Ukraine's largest, with nearly 700 stations, and ranks among the country's top three fuel retailers by sales volume. The UKRNAFTA brand has consolidated networks previously operating under the Glusco, Shell and U.Go brands.
