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Ukrainian drones reportedly strike electrical substation in Russia's Ulyanovsk Oblast

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Ukrainian drones reportedly strike electrical substation in Russia's Ulyanovsk Oblast
Illustrative image: A photo taken on February 8, 2025, shows the power substation in Rezekne, Latvia, before the disconnection of the major power line between Latvia and Russia. (Photo by Gints Ivuskans / AFP via Getty Images)

An electrical substation in Russia's Ulyanovsk Oblast is in flames following a Ukrainian drone strike, Russian Telegram media channels reported on Oct. 18.

A video posted on social media appear to show drones striking the Veshkaima substation in the region overnight, leading to a fire at the site of the attack.

The Veshkaima substation is a 500-kv electrical substation owned by a subsidiary of Rosseti, Russia's largest power transmission company.

The Kyiv Independent could not immediately verify the reports.

Ukraine has intensified long-range strikes against Russian oil, gas, and energy infrastructure, a key source of Moscow's revenues helping to fuel its all-out invasion of Ukraine. The Veshkaima substation is located over 900 kilometers east of the Russia-Ukraine border.

Overnight on Oct. 16, Ukrainian drones struck a similar substation in Russia's Volgograd Oblast, regional Governor Andrey Bocharov reported.

In late September, Belgorod Oblast Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov reported a strike on critical infrastructure as well as "significant power outages" after Ukrainian HIMARS rockets allegedly struck a thermal power plant.

Russia regularly launches mass aerial attacks at Ukrainian cities and has battered the country's power grid every fall and winter of the full-scale war.




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Dmytro Basmat

Senior News Editor

Dmytro Basmat is a Senior News Editor for The Kyiv Independent. He previously worked in Canadian politics as a communications lead and spokesperson for a national political party, and as a communications assistant for a Canadian Member of Parliament. Basmat has a Master's degree in Political Management from Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada, and a Bachelor of Arts in Politics and Governance from Toronto Metropolitan University.

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