Nearly third of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure damaged in Russian attacks
Shelling of Slovyansk TPP (illustrative photo) (Photo:Pavlo Kyrylenko/Telegram)
Two days of sustained Russian air and missile strikes have knocked out around 30% of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, Ukraine's Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko told CNN on Oct. 12.
The mass missile strikes took place on Oct. 10-11.
"It was the first time from the beginning of the war when Russia was seriously targeting energy infrastructure", said Halushchenko.
According to him, one of the aims was to stop Ukrainian electricity exports to Europe, which “helps European countries to consume less Russian gas and coal.”
Ukraine should be able to "quickly reconnect the grid to other power sources", he added.
The minister said Ukraine's energy system "as stable as it was before", but he called on partners to provide "air defense systems that could really help us protect our infrastructure."
Russia carried out at least 83 missile and air strikes against Kyiv, and other Ukrainian cities on Oct. 10, killing 14 civilians, and injuring over 90. The attack took out parts of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, precipitating a series of disruptions in power and water supply across the country.
In his evening address on Oct. 10, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy also asked Ukrainians to try not to overload the power grid from 5 to 10 p.m. and to postpone the use of washing machines, irons, and other electrical appliances that consume a lot of energy to another time.
In Kyiv, starting from Oct. 11, a schedule of hourly rolling blackouts has been introduced. Rolling blackouts were also announced in the western Ukrainian Khmelnytskyi Oblast.
Russian attacks on infrastructure facilities continued on Oct. 11. The occupying troops struck an energy facility in Lviv Oblast. About 30% of Lviv is without electricity; there are interruptions in the water supply in Sykhiv and Frankivskyi districts.
Furthermore, the Ladyzhyn thermal power plant in Vinnytsia Oblast was hit by two Russian air strikes.
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