Power lines supplying Kyiv under constant attacks, expert says
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REUTERS/Vladyslav Sodel
The Ukrainian
capital has virtually no power generation capacity, so Russian drones
attack five major nearby substations around the clock, Volodymyr Omelchenko,
director of energy programs at the Razumkov Centre for Economic and Political
Studies, told NV Radio on Nov. 3.
“At present, Kyiv has virtually no power generation of its
own,” Omelchenko said.
“The latest information came from the Kyiv City State
Administration, which said about six weeks ago that the city had launched
distributed-generation projects with a capacity of 70 megawatts. Winter demand
is expected to reach 1,800 MW. That is about 25 times more than the available
capacity. In effect, it is nothing.”
He added that Kyiv’s lack of generation left the city fully
dependent on external electricity supplies from Ukraine’s integrated power grid,
primarily supplied by nuclear power plants in the west.
“Russian forces understand this very well, which is why they
attack Kyiv’s ‘energy ring’ not just daily but hourly,” Omelchenko said.
“The ring consists of five key high-voltage substations.
When these attacks occur around the clock, it is extremely difficult for our
energy workers to restore and repair equipment because of the risk to their
lives.”
He suggested the substations needed stronger protection,
including air defense systems deployed nearby, more backup equipment, and
larger repair crews.
“Whether the Kyiv region has enough electricity depends not
even on the thermal power plants but on how well we can protect and restore
these substations,” the expert concluded.
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