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HUR Drones Hit Russia’s Only Helium Plant, Disrupting Missile and Space Industries
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![Photo of Dariia Mykhailenko]( "Photo of Dariia Mykhailenko")
On August 11, drones operated by Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence Directorate (HUR) carried out a precision strike on the Orenburg Helium Plant in the Russian city of Orenburg—the country’s only facility producing helium for rocket systems.
Sources within Ukrainian intelligence told hromadske on August 11 that helium is a critical resource not only for missile production, but also for the space industry and aviation sector. The Orenburg Helium Plant holds strategic importance as the sole facility of its kind in Russia and one of the largest in Europe.
According to the sources, the plant plays a direct role in enabling Russia’s war against Ukraine and is considered a key component of the Russian military-industrial complex.
“The Orenburg Helium Plant is the only helium production facility in the Russian Federation,” a representative of the HUR told Liga.net. “Its annual capacity is about 15 billion cubic meters of natural gas. Helium is essential for rocket manufacturing, as well as for the space and aviation industries.”
In the aftermath of the strike, local authorities closed a section of the M-5 “Ural” federal highway near the settlements of Perevolotskoye and Kholodnye Klyuchi—the location of the plant targeted by HUR drones.
Earlier, it was reported that a military intelligence drone hit one of Russia’s most advanced air-defense radars, the 98L6 “Yenisey,” in occupied Crimea—a strike analysts describe as a significant setback for Moscow’s high-tech defense capabilities.
