Anticipating blackouts: Ukraine is struggling to secure its energy system for the winter – The Economist

Ukraine is struggling to secure its energy system for the winter.

This was stated by the Minister of Energy of Ukraine, Herman Halushchenko, as reported by The Economist.

“Engineers are working around the clock right now, but progress is still slow,” the minister noted.

Herman Halushchenko told journalists that Ukraine is much more vulnerable this winter because it lacks excess capacity and has insufficient backup equipment. Despite financial assistance provided by allies, the equipment procurement processes are moving very slowly. Halushchenko believes that allies should impose a “state of emergency” to expedite the process. One somewhat hopeful aspect is that Ukraine has been connected to the European energy system, which allows for the import of electricity if needed.

To counter potential winter Russian attacks on its energy infrastructure, Ukraine plans to partially manufacture and order 100 powerful high-voltage transformers from abroad to quickly restore electricity supply. Most of the new transformers will be stored in neighboring countries, Romania and Poland, and imported into Ukraine as needed.

According to the publication, Ukrainian energy experts have done extensive work. Having gained experience in dealing with the consequences of massive attacks on the energy infrastructure last winter, they have developed unique schemes for distributing electricity and moving backup equipment across the country.

Last winter, a large number of old Soviet-era transformers, which had not been disposed of after recent upgrades, helped mitigate the consequences. They were reconnected to the grid, replacing equipment destroyed by Russian missiles.

Despite all the measures taken, from October 10th to the end of 2022, the average Ukrainian household had no electricity for a total of five weeks.

The head of Ukraine’s Ministry of Energy, Herman Halushchenko, said that Ukraine now has extensive experience in dealing with the aftermath of attacks. However, he expects that Russia will also learn from its mistakes. According to Halushchenko, the priority in preparing the energy system for potential Russian attacks should be strengthening the air defense system throughout the country.

The damage caused by last winter’s Russian attacks on Ukraine’s energy system was enormous. According to a UN Development Program report, by April 2023, Ukraine’s energy capacity had decreased by 51% compared to pre-war levels. The largest loss of capacity was due to the Russian occupation of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, which produced 44% of Ukraine’s nuclear energy.

Dmytro Saharuk, the executive director of the private company DTEK, which accounted for about 25% of all electricity production in Ukraine before the war, says that out of the pre-war staff of 60,000 employees, about 5,000 are now on the front lines. The loss of personnel has led to the lifting of pre-war restrictions for women and allowing them to work underground in coal mines due to the shortage of workers and higher wages. As of today, 250 female employees of the company have been reassigned to underground work due to the labor shortage and higher pay.