A drone that entered Estonian airspace from Russia struck the chimney of the Auvere power plant in Ida-Viru County early on March 25, 2026, in the latest drone-related incident to spill into the Baltic states from the war in Ukraine. Estonian authorities said no one was injured and that the country’s power infrastructure was not damaged.
According to the Estonian public broadcaster ERR, citing the Internal Security Service (Kapo), the impact occurred at 3:43 a.m. local time. Prosecutor General Astrid Asi said the available information indicates the drone was not directed at Estonia, while investigators work to establish the precise circumstances of the incident. Rescue Board explosive ordnance disposal teams were dispatched to the scene, and the investigation is being led by the Prosecutor’s Office together with the Internal Security Service.
Ukrainian attack or decoy drone, Estonian military says
Estonian Chief of Defense Major General Andrus Merilo said the drone that hit the Auvere power plant chimney was likely a military attack or decoy drone carrying explosives. He linked the incident to a Ukrainian strike wave against Russia’s Leningrad region and said Russian air defenses and electronic warfare likely played a role in pushing some drones into Estonian airspace.
Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur said Ukraine had used around 100 drones, with one crashing in Latvia, one striking the Auvere power plant chimney, and several others crossing Estonia’s maritime border over the Gulf of Finland.
Estonia also activated the Baltic Air Policing mission, with Italian fighters airborne, and imposed a temporary no-fly zone over eastern Estonia for several days.
No major impact on power system
Power producer Enefit Power said the Auvere plant had suffered no immediate damage and that the incident would have no significant effect on Estonia’s electricity system. The drone reportedly hit the plant’s chimney rather than power generation infrastructure.
The Estonian incident came as Ukraine launched fresh overnight drone strikes against Russia’s Baltic port infrastructure. Strikes reportedly targeted Ust-Luga, where a fire broke out.
Three days after hitting one of Russia’s two main oil export ports on the Baltic Sea, Primorsk, Ukraine strikes the other, Ust Luga, limiting Russia’s ability to benefit from rising oil prices. pic.twitter.com/b83DAnlYAx
— Yaroslav Trofimov (@yarotrof) March 25, 2026
Two days earlier, Primorsk, another major Russian Baltic oil port, was also targeted in a separate strike operation during which a suspected Ukrainian drone later crashed in Lithuania after going astray.
The incident in Estonia also coincided with another overnight drone incursion in Latvia, where authorities said a foreign unmanned aircraft entered Latvian airspace from Russia and crashed in the Krāslava region.