Moscow Oblast oil depot, warehouse reportedly set ablaze as Kyiv launches hundreds of drones towards Russian capital

Editor's note: This is a developing story and is being updated.

Ukraine's military carried out a large-scale drone attack on Moscow Oblast overnight on July 18, reportedly striking infrastructure east of the capital, Russian Telegram media channels reported.

Photos and videos posted to social media by local residents purport to show thick black smoke rising from an oil depot in the city of Noginsk, located approximately 50 kilometers (31 miles) east of the Kremlin.

Later into the morning, a large fire was also seen at warehouse for the Russian major online retailer "Wildberries," just south of Noginsk in the city of Elektrostal.

The extent of the damage caused was not immediately clear.

Amid the reported attack on Russia's capital region, Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin claimed that over 370 Ukrainian drones were launched towards Moscow Oblast, with 64 downed while approaching the capital.

The Kyiv Independent cannot immediately verify the reports nor claims made by Russian officials. Ukraine's military has not yet commented on the reported attack.

The attack on the Wildberries warehouse marked the second strike of the night targeting the major online retailer's facilities. A similar attack struck a warehouse in the town of Kotovsk in Russia's Tambov Oblast earlier in the night.

The latest attack on oil infrastructure in Russia's capital region comes exactly one month after Ukrainian forces launched their largest-ever drone attack on Moscow, striking the Moscow Oil Refinery on June 18.

Ukraine has intensified its long-range strike campaign against military, industrial, and energy targets inside Russia in recent months, with drones repeatedly reaching Moscow and other regions hundreds of kilometers from the Ukrainian border.

In response, Russia has bolstered air defenses in the capital, deploying new Pantsir-SMD-E air defense systems on the rooftops of civilian buildings in Moscow.

Kyiv considers oil facilities to be valid military targets, as the energy sites provide fuel and funding for the Kremlin's war machine.

Ukraine has been waging an increasingly successful deep strike campaign against Russian oil infrastructure, striking oil depots, disrupting production at major facilities, and in some cases halting operations indefinitely.

Reuters reported on June 24 that the Moscow Oil Refinery is unlikely to resume production this year after suffering extensive damage in recent Ukrainian drone attacks.

Ukraine's attacks on oil infrastructure have mounted pressure on the Kremlin by aggravating a domestic fuel supply crisis that has already caused export bans, price hikes, and sales restrictions across Russia. Residents of various Russian regions continue to to report hours-long wait times at service stations.