Russia said on Sunday that a massive overnight drone attack had caused significant damage to an industrial enterprise in the Kstovo district of the Nizhny Novgorod region, east of Moscow. Regional governor Gleb Nikitin said more than 100 drones were destroyed during the night and into the morning, and that, according to preliminary information, there were no casualties, AFP reported via Arab News.
Source: AFP via Arab News
Nikitin did not name the facility or say what it produces. Ukrainian monitoring channels Exilenova+ and Supernova+ published footage they said showed a fire at the NORSI oil refinery in Kstovo — also known as Lukoil-Nizhegorodorgsintez — and Ukrainian media reported the refinery as the target, the Kyiv Independent reported. The Kyiv Independent said it could not immediately verify those reports, and Russian officials have not confirmed which plant was hit.
Source: Kyiv Independent
NORSI is one of Russia's largest refineries and its second-largest producer of gasoline, according to Lukoil and published reporting. It produces diesel and aviation fuel, among other products, including fuel used to support Russian forces. The plant was previously hit in a confirmed attack on August 26, after which it suspended operations for a period.
What is solid
- Governor Nikitin confirmed a massive overnight drone attack, significant damage to an industrial enterprise in the Kstovo district, more than 100 drones destroyed and no casualties in preliminary information
- Emergency crews were working at the scene and damage assessments were under way
What is only claimed
- Whether the NORSI refinery was the facility hit — Ukrainian monitoring channels and media say it was; Russian officials have not named the plant
- The extent of the damage and any effect on production — not independently established
The Kstovo attack is the third strike on a Russian refinery in recent days, after the earlier developments at Novokuibyshevsk in the Samara region on October 30 — which ended a pause of about two weeks in reported refinery attacks — and at the Bashneft refineries in Ufa on October 31. Russian deputy prime minister Alexander Novak said on Friday that Ukraine had resumed attacks on Russian oil plants, hitting three refineries and a gas-chemical complex.
Nikitin also warned residents that, while restoration work is under way, there may be temporary power cuts and reduced hot water and heating supplies in parts of the residential utility networks. Kyiv has repeatedly struck Russian oil and gas sites in response to Russian attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022. What happens next depends on the damage assessment: how badly the Kstovo plant was hurt, and whether the refinery campaign — paused under US pressure only days ago — is now fully resumed.