Russian strikes cripple Ukraine's energy system as winter looms
The target of Russia's massive missile attack on Ukraine is the country's energy system, resulting in emergency power outages, Ukrainian Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko reported on Sunday morning.
12:43 PM EST, November 17, 2024
"Another massive attack on the energy system is ongoing. The enemy is attacking energy generation and transmission facilities across Ukraine," Halushchenko wrote on Facebook.
"The transmission system operator has urgently implemented emergency power outages. Rescuers and energy workers are already working to mitigate the effects wherever possible," Halushchenko added.
The lights went out in some districts of Odesa in southern Ukraine. Trams and trolleybuses have stopped in the city. "Currently, all electric transport in the city is not operational," stated Odesa's mayor, Hennadiy Trukhanov.
Ukraine's enormous losses
The losses in Ukraine's energy sector caused by Russia's massive attacks have exceeded $1 billion, Ukrainian Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko reported in May, acknowledging the challenging situation in this sector.
Fatih Birol, Executive Director of the International Energy Agency, noted in September that Ukraine's energy system has survived the last two winters, but "this year's will be its most challenging test yet."
The IEA emphasized that Ukraine has lost "more than two-thirds" of its electricity generation capacity and suggests in its report several solutions to repair power plants destroyed or damaged by Russia.
The agency called on European countries to accelerate "the delivery of equipment and individual components" to repair power plants and to increase the capacity to import electricity and gas from the European Union.
The IEA assessed that around $30 billion will be needed to repair the destroyed power plants and modernize the power grid.
Before Russia's aggression, Ukraine derived half of its energy from nuclear power plants, 23% from coal-fired plants, and 9% from gas-fired plants.
