Ankara: Russia said on Sunday that an overnight Ukrainian drone attack targeted a gas processing facility in the country's Orenburg region bordering Kazakhstan. Orenburg Governor Yevgeny Solntsev stated in a morning statement on Telegram that a fire erupted at one of the workshops of the partially damaged facility due to the attack. Fortunately, there were no casualties among the workers.

According to Anadolu Agency, Solntsev noted that all emergency services were dispatched to extinguish the fire, and air restrictions imposed during the attack were subsequently lifted. However, he did not provide further details about the specific facility that was targeted.

In a later statement, Ukraine's General Staff claimed responsibility for hitting the Orenburg gas processing plant, as well as the Novokuibyshevsk oil refinery in the neighboring Samara region. Meanwhile, the Russian Defense Ministry asserted that the country's air defenses successfully shot down 45 Ukrainian drones during the overnight attack, including one over the Orenburg region and 12 over the Samara region.

In the Samara region, Governor Vyacheslav Fedorshchev shared overnight via the Russian social media platform VK that the region was experiencing a drone attack, although he did not mention the oil refinery. Separately, Kazakhstan's Energy Ministry announced that the Orenburg plant temporarily ceased receiving gas from the country's Karachaganak gas field, located near the Russian border, following the attack. The ministry reported that Russia's state-owned energy company Gazprom informed them of the "emergency."

Despite the incident, Kazakhstan's gas supply remains unaffected, with domestic consumer supplies continuing without any restrictions. The ministry is actively monitoring the situation and maintaining contact with Russian authorities and the gas field's operators. On Oct. 3, Solntsev reported another drone attack on an industrial facility in the Orenburg region, claiming that four drones were intercepted over Orsk.

Ukrainian authorities did not comment on the earlier incident, although local media, including state news agency Ukrinform, reported that the country's Security Service (SBU) targeted the Orsknefteorgsintez oil refinery in Orsk, citing sources within the SBU. Both Moscow and Kyiv have frequently exchanged accusations in recent months over targeting each other's energy facilities in anticipation of winter. "To significantly restrict Russia's oil industry is to significantly restrict the war (in Ukraine)," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated in an evening video address last month.