Russia escalates assault on Ukraine's energy grid with updated tactics in 2024

Ukraine's Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko said this.

He recalled that in 2022-2023, the invading Russian forces started striking at the Ukrainian energy sector in October, while in 2024 they started in March.

"The destruction was very large, much larger than in previous years. The very nature of the strikes, the complexity of the strikes, the weapons used have changed. That is why this is indeed the most difficult year for the power system," Halushchenko said.

The minister explained that the Russians changed their tactics of attacking the power system last year. Now Russia uses UAVs every night, and during massive attacks, all kinds of missiles are added to the drones.

"In total, Russia carried out 13 massive attacks on the Ukrainian energy sector last year. Due to the intensity of the Russian shelling, this year's repair campaign at energy facilities has become the largest in years. Equipment provided by international partners or purchased with donor funds is used for repair and restoration work, among other things," he said.

• As of December 13, since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, Russia has attacked Ukraine's energy infrastructure with more than 1,000 drones and about 1,300 missiles.