NEW EMERGENCY POWER CUTS ANNOUNCED IN UKRAINE

Thu 08 December 2022:

Ukraine enforces new emergency power cuts to try to repair damaged energy infrastructure, which the national grid operator says has caused significant supply shortages.

Russia pummelled power facilities across Ukraine in the latest big wave of attacks on Monday at a time of the year when energy consumption usually rises because winter is setting in.

“As of 11:00 am on December 8, because of damage caused by missile strikes to power plants and the high-voltage network, the system has a significant shortage of electricity,” grid operator Ukrenergo said.

It said the weather complicated the situation, with western regions facing frost, rain, snow and strong winds that were causing wires to ice over, but that the most difficult situation was in eastern areas where fighting has been fiercest.

“In all regions, there is a lack of energy – up to a third of what is needed,” said Oleksandr Starukh, governor of the Zaporizhzhia region in southeastern Ukraine.

Restoring Ukraine’s energy will remain a priority: Zelenskyy

Restoring energy to Ukrainians will remain a priority item for the government, according to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

“[The] energy sector is a permanent item on our agenda – both at the staff and government levels,” Zelenskyy said in his Wednesday night address.

The president said he held a meeting on stabilising the energy system and protecting Ukrainian power plants.

He added that the generation and supply of electricity is being increased by adding more volume to the country’s energy system “almost every day”.

But due to the extensive damage to electrical systems from Russian attacks, he cautioned: “We should not forget – and everyone should not forget – that it is now impossible to restore 100 percent of the energy system as it was before … We need time. That is why shutdown schedules remain in most cities and districts.”

Zelenskyy also said the biggest number of shutdowns would be in the capital, Kyiv, and its surroundings and the Lviv, Zhytomyr, Khmelnytskyi, Poltava, Vinnytsia and Zakarpattia regions.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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