Ukraine Reportedly Strikes 4 Alcohol Distilleries in Russia in Drone Attacks

Ukrainian drones struck two alcohol distilleries in the Tula region, one in the Tambov region, and an industrial facility in the Voronezh region in an overnight attack Oct. 21-22, Russian officials and media reported.

Kyiv had not claimed credit for the attacks at the time of publication early Tuesday evening – however, the distilleries all produce ethanol, a solvent used in explosives.  

Tula Governor Dmitry Milyaev wrote on Telegram that a distillery in the town of Yefremov  and one in the village of Luzhkovsky were damaged. He added that there were no casualties.

According to The Moscow Times, in Yefremov, the Zernoprodukt plant – belonging to the Rosspirtprom company – is one of the leading producers of ethanol in Russia, producing up to 10,000 decaliters per day.

About 155 kilometers (96 miles) away, in Luzhkovsky, the Absolut factory, also owned by Rosspirtprom, reportedly could produce up to 6,200 decaliters per day.

South of Tula region, in the Tambov region, there was reportedly an explosion at the JSC Bio-Khim biochemical plant in the city of Rasskazovo, with regional head Maxim Yegorov stating that a drone attack was likely the cause.

As Reuters reported, citing the company, Bio-Khim manufactures “products of strategic importance for the state,” chiefly ethanol.

There were no casualties and the fire that broke out after the explosion was extinguished in about an hour, Yegorov said.

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Voronezh Governor Alexander Gusev also reported a drone attack, saying that a drone was “detected and suppressed,” falling on “the building of an industrial enterprise.”

He said there were no casualties, but that a fire was extinguished.

The Russian propaganda site, TASS, citing Rosaviatsiya, also reported the temporary closure of the Nizhny Novgorod airport due to the threat of Ukrainian drone attack.

The Russian Ministry of Defense reported only that overnight, 18 Ukrainian drones were destroyed – with 11 drones shot down over the Bryansk region, three over the Belgorod region, two over the Kursk region, and one each over the Tula and Oryol regions.