Russian strikes target energy facilities across 10 Ukrainian regions

Russian missile and drone attacks targeted energy facilities in 10 Ukrainian regions during the night of 2 to 3 November and the following morning, according to First Deputy Energy Minister Artem Nekrasov. The strikes hit several types of electricity infrastructure, while extensive damage in some regions left consumers without power.

Speaking at a briefing on the energy system’s operational situation, Nekrasov identified the affected regions as Vinnytsia, Dnipropetrovsk, Zaporizhzhia, Zhytomyr, Rivne, Odesa, Chernihiv, Chernivtsi, Khmelnytskyi and Kharkiv. He said Russia had directed missiles and drones at power plants, substations serving the transmission and distribution systems, and combined heat and power plants.

The most difficult electricity supply conditions were in Vinnytsia, Zhytomyr and Kharkiv regions. Energy infrastructure in those three regions suffered extensive damage, and some consumers were left without electricity. Nekrasov’s account placed them at the centre of the supply difficulties reported after the overnight and morning attacks.

Prime Minister Serhii Koretskyi also reported strikes on major power stations in Dnipropetrovsk, Vinnytsia and Kharkiv regions. His statement described attacks on a number of key substations as well, particularly in western Ukraine. Both officials’ accounts included strikes on power stations and substations, although their totals for the affected regions differed.

Koretskyi put the number of regions where the energy sector came under attack at nine, compared with the Energy Ministry’s figure of 10. Separately, Russian forces targeted Ukrainian energy infrastructure more than 20 times during 2 November, before the overnight and morning attacks described by the ministry.

On the morning of 3 November, equipment damage and voltage drops in the high-voltage network prompted emergency power cuts. Those measures were imposed in the capital, Kyiv, and in Kyiv, Poltava, Sumy, Chernihiv, Cherkasy and Kharkiv regions.

Electricity restrictions also affected some regions where emergency cuts were not in force. Scheduled outages were being applied there on 3 November, leaving consumers without electricity for more than 12 hours. These were the first outages on that scale during the autumn.

The reported disruptions therefore extended beyond areas facing emergency measures, with scheduled cuts also interrupting supply for lengthy periods. Vinnytsia, Zhytomyr and Kharkiv remained the regions identified by Nekrasov as having the most difficult power supply situation following extensive damage to their energy infrastructure.