AZERBAIJAN – Fire at Baku Oil Refinery
A fire broke out on the morning of Thursday, June 18, 2026, at the SOCAR oil refinery in Baku’s Nizami district, the country’s only oil-processing facility. It was brought under control and extinguished the same morning, with no disruption to production reported.
What happened
According to SOCAR Downstream LLC, the fire broke out at around 08:30 on June 18 as a result of a release from the upper cover section of heat exchanger No. 211/1, located at Catalytic Reforming Unit No. 31 of the refinery. The cause of the release has not been disclosed, and an investigation is underway to determine the causes of the incident.
The Ministry of Emergency Situations said its “112” hotline first received reports of the fire, after which forces of the State Fire Protection Service were dispatched to the scene.
Response and outcome
The situation was immediately brought under control, and the fire was completely extinguished through the intervention of the State Fire Protection Service of the Ministry of Emergency Situations. No casualties or injuries have been reported in the coverage so far. SOCAR Downstream stated that the refinery continues to operate in accordance with safety requirements, and no disruption to the production process has been observed.
The facility
The plant is the Heydar Aliyev Oil Refinery, Azerbaijan’s sole refinery for producing refined petroleum products. It processes 6.5 million metric tons of oil per year, or about 130,000 barrels per day. The refinery produces gasoline, jet fuel, diesel, fuel oil and other products covering most of the country’s domestic fuel needs.
This is not the first fire at the facility. A blaze in March 2025 led to a roughly 40-day shutdown for maintenance and repairs, during which SOCAR imported 40,000 tons of AI-92 gasoline to meet domestic demand. An earlier fire occurred in October 2024. Whether the June 18, 2026 incident causes any operational interruption remains to be confirmed; the company’s initial statement indicates it has not.
Photo credit: Socar Downstream. All rights reserved.