Romania Destroys Two Russian Drones Drifting Near Critical Black Sea Gas Project

Romanian army divers destroyed two Gerbera-type drones drifting in the country's Black Sea exclusive economic zone near the Neptun Deep offshore gas project, Reuters reported on August 11.

A civilian vessel working near the platform first spotted the drones that Tuesday, according to the outlet. Romanian Defense Minister Radu Miruta noted that Ukraine had confirmed the systems were not its own.

"For the safety of the shipping lane and the works being carried out around the platform, the decision was made to carry out a controlled destruction by detonation," Miruta explained.

The minister added that Romania's defense ministry had "contacted Ukrainian partners, who confirmed that the systems do not belong to them."

The Neptun Deep project, jointly owned by OMV Petrom and state producer Romgaz, is due to begin output in 2027 and is expected to make Romania the European Union's largest gas producer, according to Reuters.

Romania, a NATO member, shares a 614-kilometer (382-mile) land border with Ukraine. It has repeatedly seen Russian drones breach its airspace during more than four years of Moscow's invasion, alongside mines drifting across key Black Sea trade and energy routes, the report noted.

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The Gerbera is a low-cost drone of Russian design, typically fielded as a decoy and reconnaissance platform alongside heavier Shahed-type strike drones to overwhelm and confuse air defenses.

Cheaply built, largely from plywood and foam, the type carries a standard range of roughly 700 kilometers, though examples recovered abroad have been fitted with extra nose fuel tanks to stretch that endurance. Its low cost allows the drones to be launched in large numbers, forcing defenders to expend far costlier interceptors or, as in Romania, to neutralize the aircraft directly.

Only days before the Neptun Deep detonation, an unidentified explosive drone crossed from Romania into Bulgaria and detonated near the Trans-Balkan pipeline, a corridor now used to carry gas north toward Ukraine.

The August 8 blast struck about 100 meters inside Bulgarian territory, roughly a kilometer from a compressor station, yet its origin was never established.

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