Ukrainian drones overnight Saturday attacked power substations in Russia’s Volgograd and Vologda regions, regional authorities said
Several communities in the Volgograd region lost electricity following the strikes. Other consequences were not immediately disclosed.
In the Vologda region, local officials said the target was the Belozerskaya substation with an installed capacity of 3 gigavolt-amperes. The facility is the region’s largest power-supply hub and provides electricity to Vologda, Cherepovets and nearby industrial sites.
In the Volgograd region, the target was the Balashovskaya high-voltage substation with a capacity of 1,523 megavolt-amperes. It transmits power from the Volzhskaya hydropower plant to central Russia and, according to authorities, came under attack for the second time in the past month.
“Repair crews are restoring power to communities near the Balashovskaya transmission substation in the Kikvidzensky, Uryupinsky, Novonikolaevsky and Novoanninsky districts,” Volgograd region Governor Andrei Bocharov wrote on Telegram.
In recent weeks, Ukraine has intensified strikes on energy infrastructure inside Russia in response to ongoing mass Russian drone and missile barrages targeting Ukrainian energy facilities.
That escalation followed President Volodymyr Zelensky’s pledge to expand the geography of attacks using Ukrainian missiles. It was not immediately clear whether missiles were used in the latest overnight strikes.
In Saratov, Governor Roman Busargin said a multi-unit residential building and several cars were damaged in a drone attack. Two people sustained moderate injuries.
Russia’s Defense Ministry said Saturday morning it intercepted 82 Ukrainian drones over seven regions. The Vologda region was not among those listed. It did not specify how many drones reached their targets.
