The Alabuga Special Economic Zone in Tatarstan, where Russia assembles Shahed-type strike drones, continues to expand. Over the past several months, at least five large new production buildings have appeared on the site, and the Russians are also constructing a large anti-drone defense system around the factory.
The construction of new production facilities was reported by OSINT analyst of the Dnipro Osint project, operating under the pseudonym Harbuz. According to his data, expansion of industrial infrastructure is continuing in the southern part of the economic zone: several large elongated buildings have already been erected on the site, while a number of other facilities are at various stages of construction.
The analyst notes that internal roads and access routes to the new structures have been laid out, and construction of additional facilities is ongoing nearby. The exact purpose of the new buildings is currently unknown, although their location and configuration suggest a connection to drone production.
Data on the growth of the Alabuga territory was previously provided by Radio Free Europe journalists who compared satellite imagery from May 2025 and May 2026. During that period, the economic zone expanded by at least 340 hectares: new hangars were being built in the northern section, while residential and production facilities were completed in the central sector.
Journalists separately noted that in April 2026 construction activity intensified on a new plot of more than 450 hectares to the south of Alabuga’s main site. A new access road connecting the highway to the economic zone’s territory was also built there.
The Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS), using satellite imagery from Vantor and Airbus taken in July and August 2026, recorded the appearance of dozens of large lattice towers around the production facilities. ISIS researcher Spencer Faragasso described this as the formation of a dual protective perimeter: an inner one — consisting of shorter towers around key production buildings — and an outer one — made up of taller structures enclosing a significantly larger area. The structures are likely intended for stretching metal mesh on cables, designed to complicate strikes on the factory by cruise missiles and strike drones.
The adjacent Tatneft-Alabuga-Steklovolokno plant, which produces fiberglass fabrics for composite fuselages, is also located near the main site.
According to available estimates, in 2025 Russia launched approximately 50,000 strike drones against Ukraine, of which more than 30,000 were assessed by analysts to have been manufactured at Alabuga.
The site has already been targeted multiple times by Ukrainian far-strike drones: the facility is located more than one thousand kilometers from the Ukrainian border.
