Drone Attack Damages Chemical Plant in Russia's Perm Region
A Ukrainian drone attack overnight into Friday hit Russia's Perm region, where the governor reported minor damage at an industrial site. An exiled news outlet identified it as the Azot chemical plant in Berezniki.
An industrial facility in Russia's Perm region, in the Ural Mountains, was damaged overnight into Friday, October 23, during a Ukrainian drone attack, according to regional Governor Dmitry Makhonin. The strike took place more than 1,500 kilometers (930 miles) from the Ukrainian border, and the plant identified as the target has been hit before, in September 2026 and October 2025.
Makhonin wrote on Telegram that air defenses intercepted 20 drones over the region. Falling debris shattered windows in residential buildings in the city of Berezniki and the nearby town of Solikamsk. The governor said the industrial site suffered minor damage but did not name it.
About the facility
The exiled news outlet Astra analyzed eyewitness footage of smoke rising from the reported attack area and concluded that the target was the Azot chemical plant in Berezniki. Azot belongs to Uralchem, a corporation controlled by billionaire Dmitry Mazepin.
The plant is Russia's only producer of higher aliphatic amines, sodium nitrate and crystalline sodium nitrite. It also makes ammonium nitrate, liquid ammonia, urea, nitric acid and nitrite-nitrate salts. Ammonium nitrate is widely used as a fertilizer, but it is also a component of explosives. The company employs around 2,500 people.
Wider context
Russian civil aviation authorities imposed airspace restrictions during the air raid alert in the Perm region. Russia's Defense Ministry said it intercepted 443 Ukrainian drones across the country and the annexed Crimea between Thursday night and Friday morning.
