Ukraine’s energy ministry and power grid operator Ukrenergo has announced further power cuts today (19 August) due to a power generation shortage, citing Russian attacks on Ukraine’s energy system and increased consumption due to record hot weather.

Russian air strikes on the country’s energy infrastructure have resulted in blackouts in seven regions so far this year, requiring the capital city Kyiv to begin importing electricity from the European Union (EU).

Regular heatwaves of more than 30°C since last month have compounded matters, alongside repairs to several key nuclear power units.

The Ukrainian Energy Ministry has urged consumers to conserve energy and minimise the use of power-intensive electrical appliances to stabilise the country’s power grid and preserve energy for critical infrastructure such as hospitals.

Ukrenergo stated that the power cuts will be in effect from 5pm to 9pm Kyiv time.

In July, the EU approved a grant of €100m ($110m) to Ukrenergo under the Ukraine Investment Framework (UIF) to enhance the country’s electricity transmission network.  

Commenting on the grant, Ukraine's deputy energy minister Roman Andarak stated: “Russia cannot win on the battlefield, so they’re destroying our energy infrastructure. Among our priorities are not only the restoration of lines and substations but also the construction of new infrastructure of the transmission system using modern and energy-efficient technologies.” 

The Swedish Government also provided an energy package to Ukraine in May amounting to Skr650m ($62m) as part of the Ukraine Energy Support Fund.  

According to Ukrainian officials, the country has lost almost half of its power production capacity because of Russia’s attacks on energy facilities. 

Recent diversification efforts include Ukrainian oil producer Ukrnafta’s announcement of 16 tenders to purchase gas generator sets totalling 76.4MW in capacity and state-owned nuclear company Energoatom’s deal with French energy giant EDF.