Drones struck an area near a key Russian explosives plant in Dzerzhinsk

On the night of August 19, drones attacked the Russian city of Dzerzhinsk in the Nizhny Novgorod region. Following the attack, dense smoke was observed over the city, and according to an open-source analysis, its likely source is the territory of the Sverdlov explosives plant.

Residents of the city posted videos and photos showing drone flights, explosions, and thick smoke. The Telegram channel ASTRA reported that its OSINT analyst had localized the source of the smoke with a high degree of probability in the western part of Dzerzhinsk, where the FKP Sverdlov Plant is located.

At this time, there is no independent official confirmation regarding the scale of the damage to production facilities. Russian authorities have not released detailed information on whether the enterprise was directly hit during the attack.

A strategic enterprise for the Russian military-industrial complex

The Sverdlov plant is among the largest Russian producers of explosives and is a key enterprise of the military-industrial complex. Founded more than a century ago, it produces explosive materials, industrial chemicals, and specialized products for the defense industry.

The enterprise is on the sanctions lists of Ukraine, the European Union, the USA, Great Britain, Japan, and Switzerland. The European Union added the plant to its sanctions list on June 23, 2023, due to its connection to the Russian defense sector.

This is not the first instance of an attack on the facility. The plant was attacked by drones on April 30 as well, and it has been the target of drone strikes previously.

Russia claims record number of downed drones

The day before the attack in Dzerzhinsk, the Russian Ministry of Defense stated that air defense systems had shot down 1,671 unmanned aerial vehicles in 24 hours. The announcement further stated that 10 guided aerial bombs and two rockets from the HIMARS system had been intercepted.

These data are statements from the Russian military department and cannot be independently verified. Drone attacks against Russian industrial and military sites have intensified over the course of the war, with Kyiv presenting them as strikes on infrastructure supporting Russian military operations.