Wildberries invests in anti-drone netting after Ukrainian attacks

According to the report, the company is accepting bids to supply 478,000 square meters of galvanized metal mesh for facilities across eight Russian regions.

Under the terms of the tender, which was posted in early August, the wire must be no thicker than 2.5 millimeters, and delivery must be completed within seven days, suggesting the company is rushing to protect its warehouses.

The public documents do not specify the purpose of the purchase. However, a source at an industrial company told The Bell that the mesh is intended to protect against drone attacks.

The scale of the damage to Wildberries has been significant. By Aug. 17, about 2.4 million square meters of the company’s warehouse space had been destroyed or rendered unusable — about 43% of its total warehouse capacity.

Ukrainian drones began targeting the warehouses on July 18. Over the following month, at least 22 facilities in dozens of regions were attacked, including the Leningrad, Ryazan, Samara, Penza, Tula, Vladimir, and Tver oblasts, as well as Yekaterinburg.

Metal mesh installed several meters from a facility’s perimeter has become a popular way for Russian companies to protect themselves from drone attacks. The mesh is designed to absorb and disperse the impact of an incoming drone.

One manufacturer describes the structures as modular, removable metal lattice supports up to 100 meters tall. The structures can withstand the impact of a drone weighing up to 400 kilograms and traveling at up to 200 kilometers per hour. The so-called domes are now being installed around oil depots, combined heat and power plants, substations, and other critical infrastructure across Russia.