UKRAINE – Ukrainians are facing extended blackouts of up to eight hours on Wednesday, as their country grapples with severe damage to its power stations, caused by ongoing Russian attacks.President Volodymyr Zelensky, speaking on Tuesday at a conference on the reconstruction of Ukraine, said Russia had destroyed half of his country’s electricity-generating capacity, since it began pummelling its energy facilities in late March.Residents in the capital Kyiv, with a population of three million, are facing some of the most significant power shortages. The hum of generators reverberates though the city, while at night streets are now often coated in darkness.

Families with young children living on the top floors of apartment blocks have been left without working lifts, leaving them to walk up dozens of flights of stairs. Ukraine is buying energy from the European Union to try to cover its shortfall. Its energy ministry said it was planning on Wednesday to import its largest amount of power to date. However, this is not enough to make up its deficit, meaning nationwide power cuts have been planned during an eight-hour window, from 3pm to 11pm, in order to protect critical infrastructure such a hospitals and military facilities.

If Russia continues to attack power plants, the worst-case scenario is that come winter Ukrainians could be spending up to 20 hours a day without power and heating, according to Ukraine’s largest private energy company DTEK. Part of the issue is that Ukraine’s thermal and hydroelectric power stations are difficult and expensive to fix. “Some will take years to repair, and others might never be brought back online,” said Maria Tsaturian from Ukrenergo, Ukraine’s national energy operator. Overnight, Russia launched missile and drone attacks across Ukraine, including on the capital Kyiv, where the blasting sound of air defences could be heard in the early hours of the morning.  (BBC)…[+]