In July 2023, the Financial Times revealed that in the halls of the Alabuga zone, Iranian Shahed-136 is being assembled – in Russia rebranded to "Geran-2" – and the scout Albatross. Western companies that erstwhile operated on the site replaced companies straight related to the Iranian defence department. A fewer weeks later, The Washington Post published an extended correspondence leak between Alabuga's directorate and the company - the Sahara Thunder dune. The publication shows that Moscow and Tehran agreed to launch a mill in Tatarstan capable of producing 6,000 Shahed by the end of 2025.** Part of the payment, equivalent to 2 tons of gold, was to pass through an Iranian account in Dubai.
