A Ukrainian drone attack early on Sunday struck the Shatura Thermal Power Plant in Moscow Oblast, sparking a major fire and temporarily disrupting electricity, heating, and hot water supplies for thousands of residents in the Shatura district, about 120 kilometers east of the capital.

Moscow Oblast Governor Andrei Vorobyov confirmed the strike on the 1,500-megawatt facility, one of Russia’s oldest energy plants, saying emergency crews were battling the blaze and that no casualties had been reported. Russian authorities quickly activated backup generators to minimize outages, while air defenses intercepted additional drones over the region. The incident briefly forced the closure of major airports, including Zhukovsky.

The attack is part of Ukraine’s intensifying campaign against Russian energy infrastructure, following recent strikes on Kostroma’s power station and the Syzran refinery earlier this month.

Russia’s Defense Ministry claimed to have intercepted 112 Ukrainian drones overnight from Friday to Saturday, though Vorobyov acknowledged that several penetrated defenses to hit the Shatura plant.

While Ukrainian officials, including the Security Service (SBU), have not formally claimed responsibility, the timing aligns with Kyiv’s retaliatory operations amid Russia’s winter assaults on Ukraine’s grid.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced in October that Ukraine would produce 30,000 long-range drones in 2025, with models such as Liutyi and FP-1 capable of flights exceeding 1,000 kilometers.

The Shatura plant, operational since 1912, supplies critical energy to the Moscow region. Authorities confirmed there were no radiation leaks, and repairs are underway.