How Russia aims to black out Ukraine: expert explains attack patterns - video

He outlined three main objectives of the latest mass Russian attack.

“The first priority was isolating Ukraine’s nuclear power plants from the grid to disrupt the primary energy flow sustaining the country’s power system,” Kharchenko said, adding that despite the intensity of the attacks, fortifications around key equipment, such as autotransformers, effectively minimized damage.

“The second and third targets were substations powering major cities, with many strikes concentrated in Ternopil, Lviv, and southern Ukraine.”

On Nov. 28, Russia launched one of its largest combined assaults on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, deploying nearly 100 Shahed drones and 91 missiles, including Kalibrs, Kh-101s, and ballistic missiles. Ukraine’s air defenses intercepted 79 missiles and 35 drones, but the energy sector sustained significant damage.

Cities of Rivne, Zhytomyr, Lutsk, Mykolaiv, and others reported power and water outages. Damage to infrastructure was also recorded in Ivano-Frankivsk, Volyn, Lviv, and Sumy oblasts. In Vinnytsia, Odesa, and Kyiv oblasts, private homes were damaged, and injuries were reported.
Kyiv’s air defense successfully intercepted threats, though debris fell in two districts on the city's left bank.

Emergency power outages were implemented nationwide to stabilize the grid, later transitioning to scheduled outages for specific consumer groups.