Explosions put 3 Russian pipelines out of service, intelligence source claims
Editor's note: The article was updated with a clarification by the source that the explosions in Penza damaged an oil and gas pipeline rather than two gas pipelines, and with information about a separate explosion in Saratov Oblast.
Three oil and gas pipelines in Russia were knocked out of service in a series of explosions on Sept. 8, a Ukrainian military intelligence (HUR) source told the Kyiv Independent.
The main oil pipeline in Penza, with a capacity of 2 million barrels per day, and a regional gas pipeline in the same location were taken out of service, the source claimed, without clarifying the cause of the blasts.
At least four explosions were reportedly heard around 4:00 a.m. in the Zheleznodorozhny city district of Penza.
The damaged gas pipeline was used to "supply military facilities involved in the full-scale war against Ukraine," the intelligence source commented.
The incidents come amid escalating Ukrainian long-range drone campaign targeting the Russian energy infrastructure and a growing fuel shortage in Russia.
Local media reported that Transneft Druzhba, Russia's state-owned pipeline operator, is carrying out "planned exercises" at oil and gas facilities on Sept. 8 in cooperation with emergency authorities and special services. Russia authorities urged citizens to "remain calm and trust only verified sources of information."
According to the intelligence source, the announcement was actually intended to conceal the explosions.
Penza Oblast Governor Oleg Melnichenko reported an air raid alert in the region overnight on Sept. 9, making no mention of pipeline explosions.
The western city of Penza lies roughly 530 kilometers (330 miles) from the Russia-Ukraine border and 540 kilometers (335 miles) southeast of Moscow.
In Saratov Oblast, another key oil pipeline was blown up, the source later reported. The Kuibyshev-Lysychansk main oil pipeline, which provided fuel to the Russian army with an annual capacity of 82 million metric tons, was allegedly shut down.
This marked the third Russian energy site disabled within the past 24 hours, according to the source.
Temporary restrictions on aircraft arrivals and departures were imposed at Saratov Airport due to the threat of drone attacks on the evening of Sept. 9.
Saratov Oblast lies in southwestern Russia at the country's border with Kazakhstan.
The Kyiv Independent could not independently verify the claims.
The incidents follow a similar case on Aug. 26, when an unexplained explosion started a fire at the Ryazan-Moscow oil pipeline, a key petroleum product supply route for the Russian capital, a HUR source said at the time.
Ukrainian forces have repeatedly targeted Russian energy infrastructure through sabotage operations and drone strikes throughout the full-scale war, aiming to undermine Moscow's gas and oil revenues.
