Before the full-scale invasion, it was connected to the power systems of Russia and Belarus.

Russian energy engineers participated in the planning of massive missile attacks on the energy infrastructure of Ukraine.

This was emphasized by Volodymyr Kudrytskyi, the chairman of the board of NEC “Ukrenergo” in an interview with the Financial Times. According to him, Russian engineers knew Ukraine’s power grid “like the back of their hand”, because before the start of the full-scale invasion, it was combined with the power systems of Russia and Belarus.

“The attacks were planned and carried out not only by the Russian military, but also by Russian energy workers,” Kudrytskyi said.

He also said that Russia is not targeting power plants, but key nodes of the transmission system. According to the chairman of the board, now Ukrainian energy experts understand the Russian strategy best, so they try to minimize the consequences of the attacks.

Attacks on the energy system of Ukraine

As reported, since October 10, Russian invaders have been massively shelling critical infrastructure facilities in Ukraine. After another attack on November 23, Ukraine experienced a blackout.

In December, it was reported that 702 critical infrastructure facilities were damaged in the country. Because of this, planned and emergency blackouts are used in the regions.

According to Oleksandr Kharchenko, director of the Energy Research Center, the complete restoration of Ukraine’s energy system, if the shelling is stopped, may take a year and a half.

In addition, the Ukrainian government is considering the possibility of creating a decentralized energy system.