DTEK urges support for Ukraine’s damaged energy system

Following the fiercest russian attacks since the full-scale invasion, we are calling on our allies and partners to help meet the urgent need for emergency equipment and air defences.

“DTEK's thermal power plants have been attacked 48 times over the past six months but russia’s attacks in the past few weeks have been the worst since full-scale invasion in 2022.

“Rather than continuing to focus on Ukraine’s transmission systems, from late-March russia began launching massive attacks on our energy generation infrastructure, using weapons such as kamikaze drones, hypersonic missiles and Kalibr cruise missiles. These high-precision strikes have led to a significant increase in the destructive effectiveness of russian attacks.

“russia has attacked all six of DTEK’s thermal power plants in recent weeks, causing the worst destruction we have suffered since February 2022. Unfortunately, the passive defences DTEK has been installing – such as concrete blocks and sandbags – have only had a limited effect against these precision attacks. We urgently need stronger air defences to save and protect Ukraine’s energy system.

“russia is seeking to strangle Ukraine’s energy system, in particular Ukraine’s thermal and hydro power stations. These play a key function in balancing the grid and meeting consumption during the morning and evening peaks. If these attacks are not stopped, blackouts will become a reality for millions of ordinary Ukrainians, severely impact industry and damage millions of businesses on which our economy depends.

“DTEK teams are working around the clock to repair and restore as quickly as possible and we are appealing for urgent access to new or used generators, turbines, power unit control systems, transformers and auto-transformers, worth around $172mln. We aim to restore around half our pre-March capacity within four months. The damage is so extensive however, that near full restoration will take much longer. And of course, all this assumes that there will be no further attacks.

“We learned long ago that russia is a terrorist state and has no red lines. Strong anti-missile systems are vital to prevent a humanitarian catastrophe in Ukraine.

“We stand at a critical moment in our need to convert global words of support into concrete action.”