"This morning, Ukrainian armed formations attempted to blow up an oil depot in the city of Donetsk using a UAV. The UAV with an attached explosive device fell on an oil depot cistern but did not detonate immediately", Nikonorov said.
The Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe's monitors were notified of the incident, the DPR official said.
"During the attempt to defuse the explosive device, an explosion occurred... Victims and large-scale consequences were avoided", Nikonorov added.
Ukraine has been waging war against the eastern regions of Donetsk and Luhansk since 2014 when they proclaimed independence following a violent coup in Kiev. This October, the tensions escalated in the area, after the Ukrainian military boosted its operations, reportedly using UAVs to attack the DPR forces.