Russia struggles to replenish tank reserves as stockpiles dwindle
The Russians are facing increasing challenges in replenishing their losses in Ukraine, particularly those related to tanks. This is evidenced by rapidly dwindling stockpiles in warehouses where Soviet-era equipment has been stored for years, such as the base in Bui in the Kostroma region.
It is estimated that since the beginning of the war, the Ukrainians have already eliminated over 3,500 invading tanks. These figures are reported by the creators of the Oryx blog, who document Russian equipment losses. In reality, Russian losses may be even higher because not every destroyed or damaged tank is captured on video or in photographs.
Warehouses in Bui are depleted
Although the Russian economy was shifted to a war footing and initially coped well with Western sanctions, systematically supplying Putin’s army with more tanks, growing problems with the production of new tanks have been observed in recent months. The situation with retrieving old equipment from warehouses is also starting to look bleak because they are running out of tanks suitable for refurbishment and deployment to the front, or even for sourcing components for machines already in service.
The base in Bui in the Kostroma region also attests to this. An OSINT analyst running the popular YouTube account Covert Cabal estimated what it looked like in recent years versus now. Satellite images from this year show that only 102 tanks remain there. On the eve of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, there were as many as 764, and by mid-2023, about 480. The analyst noted that even many tanks stored in parts of the base reserved for semi-dismantled and clearly non-functional machines have been removed.
Old tanks in Russian service
Incomplete tanks can be used as "donors of spare parts." The base in Bui in the Kostroma region was viewed before the war as one of the larger locations where the Russians stored Soviet armoured vehicles and tanks, including the T-80.
Reports from the front in Ukraine show that the Russians are no longer shy about using even older tanks. The T-80 tanks began production in 1976, distinguished by their gas turbine engines. Meanwhile, Ukrainian territories are also seeing the T-62M and T-62, and even tanks like the T-55, whose production began in 1958. These are equipped with a 100 mm cannon, lack modern systems and optics, and therefore do not provide the crew with adequate situational awareness. They also have very weak armour, unsuitable for today’s conditions.
