Ukrainian drones reportedly strike oil refinery in Ryazan and cut power in Kursk region

Falling debris from a Ukrainian drone attack on Russia’s central Ryazan region caused a fire to break out at a business premises in the early hours of Thursday morning, Governor Pavel Malkov said on Telegram.

Drone wreckage also fell across the city of Ryazan itself, Malkov continued. While Malkov did not name the business affected by the fire, Telegram news channel ASTRA said that the local oil refinery had come under attack. No casualties were reported.

The Ryazan oil refinery belongs to Russian state energy corporation Rosneft, and is one of the largest oil refineries in the country. If confirmed, it would not be the first attack, with the refinery attacked by Ukrainian drones in the early hours of 15 November, according to ASTRA.

The Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) also struck power substations in the border areas of the Russian Kursk region, Governor Alexander Khinshtein said on Thursday, with some 16,000 people in three districts left without electricity.

Russia’s Defence Ministry said air defences had destroyed 65 Ukrainian drones across the country overnight, with the Voronezh region, which borders Ukraine, the worst affected.

Meanwhile, the Ukrainian Air Force reported that air defences had shot down 106 Russian drones across the country overnight, while 29 drones were recorded as hitting 16 locations, and debris falling in three.