Ukrainian Armed Forces drones attacked the Apatit chemical plant in Russia’s Vologda Oblast
On Monday, 13 April, Ukrainian drones attacked the ‘Apatit’ chemical plant in the city of Cherepovets in Russia’s Vologda Oblast. This was announced by Robert Brovdi, commander of the Ukrainian Armed Forces’ Unmanned Systems Forces, whose call sign is ‘Madyar’.
Details of the operation and the consequences of the strike were not specified.
The governor of the Vologda region reported that 13 drones had been directed towards the industrial zone of Cherepovets. According to him, they were shot down as they approached, and emergency services were working at the crash site. He did not report on the consequences.
Videos published on the Telegram channels Astra and Exilenova+ show at least two fires on the plant’s premises. Analysis of this footage suggests the strike may have targeted the nitrogen complex of the Cherepovets branch of JSC Apatit.
The OSINT project Exilenova+ claims that the footage shows black smoke rising above three ammonia production units with a combined capacity of 900,000 tonnes per year. There are also reports of a possible strike on an ammonia storage facility, which had been further reinforced with a metal structure following the start of the full-scale invasion.
The Apatit plant is part of the chemical cluster of the PhosAgro Group, which is one of the largest producers of phosphate fertilisers, phosphoric acid and sulphuric acid in Europe. The plant produces, among other things, ammonia, nitric acid and ammonium nitrate.
According to media reports, some of these products are dual-use and can be used in the military industry.
It is reported that this is not the first attack on the facility. According to sources, the plant was already hit by drones in March, though there was no official confirmation at the time.
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