The Orenburg gas processing plant, recognized as the world’s largest facility of its kind, has ceased gas intake from Kazakhstan following a Ukrainian drone attack, as confirmed by Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Energy on Sunday.
Yevgeny Solntsev, the regional governor of Orenburg, disclosed earlier on the same day that the plant sustained partial damage due to the drone strike, leading to a fire outbreak in one of its workshops. The fire was swiftly extinguished, as reported by Russian media outlet Kommersant, citing the plant operator.
Ukraine has intensified its assaults on Russian refineries and energy facilities since August in an attempt to disrupt gasoline supplies and undermine Moscow’s financial resources. Ukraine acknowledged targeting a gas processing plant in the Orenburg region and an oil refinery in the Samara region of southwestern Russia.
The Ukrainian military reported witnessing explosions and fire at the Orenburg site, marking the first recorded strike on the plant, an integral component of the Orenburg gas chemical complex.
Operated by Gazprom, the facility boasts an annual processing capacity of 45 billion cubic meters, managing gas condensate sourced from both the Orenburg oil and gas field and Kazakhstan’s Karachaganak field.
Kazakhstan’s Energy Ministry stated that Gazprom had alerted them about the emergency but had yet to provide specific details regarding the extent of the damage or a timeline for full operational resumption. Fortunately, no injuries were reported as a result of the attack.
Furthermore, Vyacheslav Fedorishchev, the governor of Russia’s Samara region, mentioned on social media that air defenses were activated overnight against Ukrainian drones. Additionally, he noted that local airport operations and mobile internet services were temporarily halted. Ukraine had previously attempted to target an oil refinery in the Samara region.
Russia’s Defence Ministry announced that its air defense forces successfully intercepted 45 Ukrainian drones overnight, with 12 shot down over the Samara region, 11 over the Saratov region, and one over the Orenburg region.