On Friday, 9 January, during emergency restoration works, a repair crew of JSC Khersonoblenergo came under attack by an enemy drone. One worker was injured and is receiving all necessary medical assistance. This incident is another example of Russia’s deliberate energy terrorism, said Deputy Minister of Energy of Ukraine Roman Andarak during the telethon “United News”.
Overall, the situation in Ukraine’s power system remains difficult due to the consequences of repeated massive attacks. Enemy strikes have damaged both transmission and distribution networks as well as generation facilities. In Kyiv, Russian attacks also damaged district heating facilities, causing interruptions in heat and water supply. Energy crews have so far restored electricity for 153,000 consumers, with ongoing repair and restoration works at the affected facilities.
The combination of damage and cold weather has led to increased electricity consumption, putting additional strain on the power system and necessitating the use of emergency outage schedules in the capital and hourly outage schedules in other regions.
"The most difficult situation remains in the frontline and border regions with Russia. Many settlements there remain without electricity, gas, and water due to constant Russian attacks. The sole cause of these restrictions is the deliberate energy terrorism by the enemy," Roman Andarak noted.
He also emphasized that winter is not unexpected for energy workers—the system is prepared annually for the heating season, and resource reserves are accumulated. However, the intensity and accuracy of Russian attacks directly affect the stability of the power system.
The Deputy Minister additionally urged consumers to use electricity responsibly and not to turn on all high-consumption appliances at once after power is restored according to the schedules, in order to avoid additional load on the networks and prevent further damage.
