Russia's Largest Port Has Restricted Nighttime Vessel Traffic Due to Drone Attacks – Reuters
Russian authorities have imposed temporary restrictions on vessel traffic in the port of Novorossiysk. Effective immediately, entry into and exit from Russia’s largest port during nighttime hours—from midnight to 5 a.m.—are temporarily prohibited due to the threat of drone attacks.
According to the agency, the decision was made in response to attacks by Ukrainian drones. The order was given verbally—no official document was sent to shipowners. Sources speaking to Reuters clarified that outside of the nighttime window, the port is operating as usual, and grain shipments have not been affected.
Novorossiysk is Russia’s largest port in terms of cargo turnover. Up to one-third of Russia’s grain exports pass through it, and it also handles shipments of oil, metals, and container cargo. This is not the first time drone attacks have disrupted port operations: previously, oil exports were restricted here following strikes on a Transneft terminal, Reuters notes.
Losses incurred by Russian sellers from the July 22 drone attacks on Wildberries warehouses in Krasnodar and Nevinnomyssk could amount to approximately 100–120 billion rubles (1.27–1.53 billion U.S. dollars), assuming the warehouses were fully stocked and most of the goods were destroyed.
On the night of July 18, Ukrainian drones attacked the Russian Wildberries logistics center in Elektrostal, near Moscow, and in the Tomsk region.
