(Reuters) – A fire broke out and was extinguished at Russian steelmaker NLMK’s main plant, the regional governor said on Saturday, the second anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Preliminary data indicated the fire at the Novolipetsk Steel plant was caused by a drone, Lipetsk regional Governor Igor Artamonov wrote on the Telegram messaging app, without mentioning Ukraine.
A video posted on social media showed an explosion, with a large orange flame illuminating the nighttime sky.
The plant, NLMK’s key production site, is about 400 km (250 miles) from the Russia-Ukraine border. It specialises in flat steel products, making 80% of NLMK’s steel products and 18% of Russian steel.
There were no casualties, Artamonov said.
NLMK said on social media the fire broke out at 1:40 a.m. (2230 GMT on Friday) The company did not immediately respond to Reuters request for additional comment.
(Reporting by Polina Devitt in London; Editing by William Mallard)
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