Fire Rages at Russian Lukoil Plant Amid Reported Drone Strike

A fire has erupted at the Lukoil gas processing facility in Kotovo, Russia, amid claims that the blaze was triggered by a drone attack.

The Telegram channel Astra, which referenced eyewitness accounts from residents in the Volgograd region, identified the affected site as the Korobkovsky gas processing plant, The Caspian Post informs via Ukrainian media.

While there has been no official confirmation of the attack, Volgograd Governor Andrei Bocharov acknowledged that emergency responders were actively tackling several fires at fuel and energy infrastructure sites in the region following a series of assaults.

Local authorities have yet to release information regarding the extent of the damage caused by the fire.

The drone strike was confirmed by Andrii Kovalenko, head of Ukraine’s Center for Countering Disinformation. Kovalenko did not specify the origin of the drones but stressed the critical role of the facility, stating, “This site is vital to Russia’s oil and gas infrastructure, managing the processing and transportation of gas condensate, as well as producing raw materials for the chemical industry.”

Satellite data from NASA’s Fire Information for Resource Management System (FIRMS) corroborated the reports, showing signs of a fire at the gas processing plant.