Russian forces struck energy infrastructure in eight Ukrainian oblasts during the night of 26 to 27 October, leaving some consumers without electricity in several regions, according to Ukraine's national grid operator Ukrenergo and the Ministry of Energy.
Power was cut for part of the consumers in Vinnytsia, Dnipropetrovsk, Donetsk, Chernihiv, Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia and Sumy oblasts. The energy sector of Khmelnytskyi Oblast was also attacked, as reported by the regional operator Khmelnytskoblenergo.
Emergency repair crews have started work at the affected sites wherever security conditions allow it.
As a result of the damage, hourly outage schedules have been introduced that cover up to 2.5 queues. Ukrenergo describes a queue as a group of households and businesses that together use a defined amount of megawatts, and its Dispatch Centre decides how many queues are needed in each oblast to cover shortfalls in supply.
Under a Cabinet of Ministers resolution, critical infrastructure and eligible industrial companies that import at least 60% of their energy cannot be disconnected. The restrictions will apply to all other categories of consumers in parts of the country until the end of the day. Residents in those areas could be without electricity for 8 to 12 hours a day.
Officials warned that the situation could shift if Russia carries out further attacks on the energy system, and that the scale of the outages might grow as a result.
Electricity consumption has fallen in the meantime. On the morning of 27 October it was 1.36% lower than at the same hour the day before. The authorities attribute the drop to new forced limits on consumption that followed the damage from the strikes.
The agencies involved are asking Ukrainians to limit the use of high-power electrical appliances during peak hours, from 16:00 to 22:00. They say this will help avoid overloading the power system and prevent further accidents.
The latest strikes come as parts of the country were already struggling. The city of Konotop in Sumy Oblast has been without electricity for a fourth consecutive day after Russian attacks on the night of 23 to 24 October, and there is no forecast for when power will return.
