Despite the rather difficult and frosty weather – up to minus 8 degrees at night and up to several degrees of frost during the day – sharp and drastic changes in the situation with electricity supply are not expected.
About it on the air of Suspilny stated Andrii Gerus, head of the Committee on Energy and Housing and Communal Affairs.
“Taking into account the whole complex of factors – the weather, the availability of electricity, and the technical condition after shelling, power plants, substations, I think that next week the situation will be close to what it was last week,” he said.
Gerus noted that energy workers have already learned to adapt to different weather conditions, so restoration is ongoing and work is always ongoing.
Also, according to him, Ukraine has a strategic reserve of generators that are kept for a “dark day”. In addition, the EU supplies additional generators to Ukraine, and the regions sometimes share the necessary equipment among themselves.
“Now everyone supports Odesa. God forbid, if something like this happens somewhere, then we will all support another area, and no one abandons anyone in trouble. We will work together to get out and normalize the situation,” Gerus concluded.
What is the situation with electricity supply in Ukraine
Ukraine’s energy system has already survived 13 Russian missile attacks and 15 UAV strikes on energy facilities. In addition, more than 10 GW of the main installed capacities are currently inaccessible to the Ukrainian energy system and are under the control of the occupiers. This is the largest in Ukraine and Europe: Zaporizhzhia NPP, Zaporizhzhia TPP, Luhansk TPP, Vuglehirskaya TPP, Kakhovskaya HPP. In addition, the majority of wind and solar power plants are also located in the temporarily occupied territories of the south.
In the fall of 2022, Russia began regularly shelling Ukraine’s energy infrastructure. In December, it was reported that half of Ukraine’s energy system was disabled due to Russian shelling. And after the shelling on December 16, a state of emergency was introduced in the energy sector.
On November 23, when Russia carried out its latest massive missile attack on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, emergency blackouts were introduced across the country. Due to shelling, Ukrainians found themselves not only without electricity, but also without water supply and communication. The lights went out in Moldova. On December 5, Russia again fired missiles at critical infrastructure facilities in Ukraine. The Russians launched more than 70 rockets, the Ukrainian military shot down more than 60. Power and water outages began in the country. One of the missiles fell on the territory of Moldova.
On December 16, the Russian Federation launched 76 missiles over Ukraine, anti-aircraft defense destroyed 60. In a number of regions, emergency blackouts were introduced. In three days, on December 19, Russia carried out a drone attack, releasing more than 30 Iranian-made drones over Ukraine.
International organizations and national governments are sending generators and other assistance to Ukraine to restore electricity. On December 13, the first energy “Ramstein” was held in Paris, where, among other things, $1 billion was approved for Ukraine to get through the winter.
The government of Ukraine is considering three blackout scenarios and urges Ukrainians to conserve electricity and prepare for long-term blackouts.
