On the night of June 24, Ukrainian unmanned systems struck critical industrial facilities in the Orenburg region. The targets were the Orenburg Gas Processing Plant (GPP) and the only helium plant in Russia, the Orenburg Helium Plant (OHP). This was reported by the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and the press service of the Special Operations Forces.

Strategic significance of the target

The plants, located more than 1200 km from the line of contact, form a single powerful complex. The Orenburg GPP, which began operations in 1974, is one of the largest gas chemical facilities in the world. Its annual capacity is 45 billion cubic meters of gas, covering 60% of all processing volumes of Gazprom.

The products of these enterprises are directly related to the military industry:

  • The GPP produces sulfur, which is used to create explosives and black powder.
  • The OHP extracts helium — an inert gas necessary for the operation of liquid-fuel rocket engines and guidance systems.
  • The plant also produces ethane, a key component for the synthesis of special plastics and cable insulation used in aviation.

Operation details

According to Ukrainian military data, the mission to strike the facilities was carried out in coordination with the underground insurgent movement on the territory of the Russian Federation, known as "Black Spark." A fire was recorded on the territory of the enterprises, however, the exact scale of material damage is currently being clarified.

Situation in other directions

On the same night, Ukrainian forces struck other strategic points. In the Belgorod region, in the Alexeyevka area, a train was hit by FPV drones. In addition, unmanned aerial vehicle control points of the occupiers were destroyed in several regions:

  • Dnipropetrovsk region: Vremennyy Yar area.
  • Zaporizhzhia region: Basan and Grozovoy areas.
  • Kursk region: Tetkino and Popovo-Lezhache settlements.
  • Belgorod region: Zhuravlevka.

It should be noted that this is not the only major operation in recent times. Earlier, on August 24, the SBU carried out a special operation in occupied Crimea, where air defense systems near Kerch and the infrastructure of the "Saki" and "Gvardeyskoye" military airfields were hit. On the same night, drones of the Unmanned Systems Forces attacked the main substation of Sevastopol.