Russian governor claims fire at power plant in Rostov Oblast disabled 2 units

A transformer substation at the Novocherkassk State District Power Plant in Russia's Rostov Oblast caught fire overnight on March 25, claimed Vasily Golubev, the regional governor.

His statement came after Russian Telegram channels wrote about multiple explosions in the region amid an alleged drone attack, citing local residents. The Russian Defense Ministry claimed to have shot down 11 Ukrainian drones over Rostov Oblast overnight.

The Novocherkassk State District Power Plant is the largest thermal power plant in Rostov Oblast. Two high-voltage 330 kV lines, Tikhoretskaya and Rostovskaya, were automatically disconnected as a result of the fire, Golubev claimed.

"The power supply to consumers has been restored. Two power units of State District Power Plant were temporarily taken out of operation," he wrote on Telegram.

The fire was quickly extinguished, and its cause is being determined, according to the governor. No casualties were reported.

The Kyiv Independent couldn’t verify the claims. There were no comments from Ukrainian officials on the incident.

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In the past weeks, Ukrainian forces have launched a series of drone strikes aimed at damaging Russia's oil industry.

A total of 12 Russian oil refineries were successfully hit in multiple regions deep inside Russian territory as of March 17, Ukrainska Pravda reported, citing an unnamed source in the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU).

Drone attacks on Russia's oil refineries have likely disrupted at least 10% of the country's refinery capacity, according to the U.K. Defense Ministry.

Deputy Prime Minister Olha Stefanishyna said on March 22 that Russia's oil refineries are "absolutely legitimate targets" for the Ukrainian military. Her statement followed media reports that the U.S. had asked Ukraine to stop attacking the Russian oil industry.

Advisor to Ukraine's Presidential Office head Mykhailo Podolyak denied the reports, saying Kyiv did not receive any such calls from Washington.

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