A Ukrainian drone attack on a gas plant in Russia's Orenburg, one of the largest facilities of its kind in the world, continues to impact production in neighboring Kazakhstan as the European Union moves to phase out Russian gas imports by the end of 2027.
Intake at the Kazakh facility, according to the Central Asian country's Energy Ministry, was suspended after the October 19 attack, the first reported strike on the plant, which forms part of the Orenburg gas chemical complex that is operated by the Russian state energy giant Gazprom.
Reuters quoted sources on October 20 as saying that because of the strike, production at Kazakhstan’s Karachaganak field was reduced by 25 percent to 30 percent. The plant processes 37.5 billion cubic meters of gas per year.
Officials in Kyiv have confirmed Ukraine was behind the attack, which President Volodymyr Zelenskyy touted as showing "an increase both in the range and in the accuracy of our long-range sanctions against Russia."
"Practically every day or two, Russian oil refineries are being hit. And this contributes to bringing Russia back to reality."
In recent months, Kyiv has intensified its attacks on Russia's energy infrastructure, which appear to be causing fuel shortages and price increases inside Russia.
The oil depot in Novokuibyshevsk was also hit last month, with Ukraine's General Staff reporting substantial damage to its infrastructure at the time.
Meanwhile, EU energy ministers gave their backing to a plan that would phase out Russian and oil gas imports to the bloc by January 2028 despite opposition from Slovakia and Hungary, who are still dependent on Russian energy supplies.
The plan, which along with sanctions against Russia, was sparked by Moscow's war against Ukraine and is part of a broader strategy for the 27-nation bloc.
“Although we have worked hard and pushed to get Russian gas and oil out of Europe in recent years, we are not there yet,” Lars Aagaard, energy minister of Denmark, which holds the European Union’s rotating presidency, said, adding the October 20 agreement was a "crucial step" toward achieving the strategy.
Before Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Russia accounted for around 45 percent of the EU's gas imports. The figure now stands at around 12 percent.
EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said earlier on October 20 that a new sanctions package -- the EU's 19th -- against Russia could be approved as early as this week.
"Russia only understands strength. It only negotiates when put under pressure," she said.
