Ukraine Faces Energy Crisis as Power Generation Plunges to ‘Zero’

Ukraine scrambled on Sunday to restore electricity and heating after Russian attacks on energy infrastructure reduced the country’s power generation capacity to “zero”.

Moscow, which has intensified strikes on Ukrainian infrastructure in recent months, launched hundreds of drones overnight into Saturday targeting energy facilities across the country.

The attacks disrupted electricity, heat, and water supplies in several cities, with state power firm Centerenergo warning that generating capacity “is down to zero”.

State provider Ukrenergo announced that power would be cut for between eight and 16 hours a day across most regions on Sunday, as repairs were carried out and alternative energy sourcing was arranged.

While the situation had stabilised somewhat, regions including Kyiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Donetsk, Kharkiv, Poltava, Chernigiv, and Sumy could continue to experience regular power cuts, Ukraine’s Energy Minister Svitlana Grynchuk said Saturday evening.

“The enemy inflicted a massive strike with ballistic missiles, which are extremely difficult to shoot down. It is hard to recall such a number of direct strikes on energy facilities since the beginning of the invasion,” she told the local broadcaster United News.

Russian drones had targeted two nuclear power substations deep in western Ukraine, Kyiv’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said, calling on the UN’s nuclear watchdog to respond.

The substations supply the Khmelnytskyi and Rivne nuclear plants, located roughly 120 km and 95 km from Lutsk respectively, he added.

“Russia is deliberately endangering nuclear safety in Europe. We call for an urgent meeting of the IAEA Board of Governors to respond to these unacceptable risks,” Sybiha wrote on Telegram, referring to the International Atomic Energy Agency.

He also urged China and India, traditionally major buyers of Russian oil, to pressure Moscow to cease its attacks.

Experts have warned that the strikes on energy infrastructure threaten heating supply ahead of winter.

Russia has consistently targeted Ukraine’s power and heating grid throughout its almost four-year invasion, destroying large portions of critical civilian infrastructure.

The overnight barrage into Saturday marked the ninth major attack on gas infrastructure since early October, according to Ukraine’s energy company Naftogaz.

A report by Kyiv’s School of Economics estimated that the strikes had shut down half of Ukraine’s natural gas production.

Ukraine’s top energy expert, Oleksandr Kharchenko, told a briefing on Wednesday that if Kyiv’s two main power and heating plants went offline for more than three days during temperatures below minus 10C, the capital would face a “technological disaster”.

In response, Ukraine has stepped up strikes on Russian oil depots and refineries in recent months, aiming to cut off Moscow’s energy exports and create fuel shortages across Russia.

The ongoing attacks highlight the growing energy vulnerability of Ukraine just as winter approaches, with millions at risk of extended power and heating outages.