Recovery of individual equipment may last from several weeks to months: DTEK describes consequences of Burshtyn thermal power plant attack

This was reported by DTEK Energo at the request of Espreso.West.

"As a result of the shelling, not only the Burshtyn thermal power plant, Ivano-Frankivsk region, was damaged, but also the Ladyzhyn thermal power plant, Vinnytsia region, and the Prydniprovsk thermal power plant, Dnipropetrovsk region. Energy equipment of enterprises was damaged by the blows, and infrastructure was damaged at some facilities. The situation is complex, and the damage is significant. After eliminating the consequences of shelling and inspecting the damaged equipment, the company's energy engineers are doing everything possible to restore it as soon as possible," the communications department of DTEK Energo reported. "It is too early to talk about the exact timing. The equipment that did not suffer serious damage is currently continuing to work. For some of the equipment that suffered serious damage due to impacts, recovery may take from several weeks to months. Much depends on the availability of spare parts and the speed of manufacturing parts, which are not enough in stocks".

The specifics of the thermal power plants' construction is that most of the equipment is manufactured individually, so a full recovery of activity requires considerable time and a lot of resources.

"The losses are significant, and they are measured in hundreds of millions of hryvnias," the company says. "DTEK Energo has prepared for similar situations and has a clear action plan. The company's energy engineers are in constant contact with Ukrenergo. If necessary, they are ready to use all available capacities at the DTEK Energo TPP to maintain the reliability of the Ukrainian energy system. For this purpose, DTEK Energo prepared its TPPs in advance for operation during periods of peak loads during the autumn-winter period. Repairs of 19 power units have been completed, and more than UAH 1.3 billion have been invested. Planned repairs are ongoing on 4 blocks, and 3 more are planned to be implemented by the end of the year. In total, DTEK plans to carry out 26 repairs this year."

As for resuming the export of electricity from the Burshtyn thermal power plant to the EU, it will be possible if there is enough electricity on the Ukrainian market.

"On March 16, 2022, the Ukrainian energy system was prematurely synchronized with ENTSO-E. After the unification of the energy systems, the possibility of exporting to the EU depends on the presence of a surplus of electricity in the entire energy system of Ukraine and the permitted capacity allocated at the relevant auctions. This issue belongs to the competence of the system operator," Ukrenergo says.