Ukraine must prepare for extended power and heating outages — former energy minister

Ivan Plachkov, former minister of fuel and energy of Ukraine (1999, 2005-2006) and Chairman of the Board of the All-Ukrainian Energy Assembly, shared the information Espreso TV. 

“Indeed, the situation is difficult. We have witnessed massive attacks on energy facilities — substations and thermal power plants. It’s no coincidence that the start of the heating season has been postponed. Energy workers are facing certain challenges as equipment — transformers and other infrastructure elements — need to be restored,” Plachkov said.

According to the former minister, this winter will indeed be difficult for Ukraine — and not only for Kyiv. The situation is especially concerning for large cities facing heating supply problems. While electricity can usually be restored relatively quickly, the restoration of heat generation is a far more complex and time-consuming process.

“The heating season will take place, but we must be ready for situations where electricity supply could be interrupted for a day, two, three, or even a week. And, unfortunately, heating shutdowns are also possible. Therefore, we need to plan how we can get through this period,” Plachkov emphasized.