Drones hit the Druzhba oil pipeline pumping station in Tatarstan: what are the consequences?
23 February 11:24
Early in the morning on February 23, Ukrainian drones struck the Kaleikino oil pumping station in the Almetyevsk district of Tatarstan, which is the starting point of the Druzhba pipeline. Local residents heard several explosions. According to regional authorities, the “neutralization of the UAV” and the fall of “debris” from the aircraft in the industrial zone caused a “local fire,” reports "Komersant Ukrainian", citing Russian propaganda media.
The Tatarstan government said that fire crews were working at the site and there were no casualties. A drone threat was also reported at night in Nizhnekamsk and Yelabuga, near Russia’s largest Geran drone production facility (Alabuga SEZ).
Ukrainian monitoring channels have published videos and photos of the fire and a column of black smoke above the Kaleikino pumping station, as well as the moment of the “arrival.”
Astra also confirms the information about the damage to the station.
The Kaleikino pumping station is the main station that receives oil from several pipelines and serves as a major hub for supplying raw materials to the Druzhba oil pipeline system. Oil flows from the Volga and Western Siberia fields converge at the station near Almetyevsk, after which they are fed into the main pipeline going west.
Ukrainian Armed Forces drones were spotted in the Almetyevsk district of Tatarstan on Saturday, February 21. The authorities reported an “attempted attack on industrial facilities.”
