Stronger air defence systems are the critical element for Ukraine’s energy system to get through the biggest crisis in its history, DTEK Executive Director Dmytro Sakharuk has told an influential Ukraine podcast produced by Britain’s Telegraph newspaper.

“The most important and the most crucial condition for the ability of Ukraine to fight further in this war now is air defence and munition for that air defence,” Sakharuk told the Ukraine: The Latest podcast.

In the interview Sakharuk also discussed …

  1. DTEK’s mission to restore devastated generation capacity by searching for spare parts in Soviet-era power stations across Eastern Europe.
  2. The need to increase energy import capacity from 1.7 GW today to between 2 and 2.5GW.
  3. Alternative technologies and solutions that could help millions fill the energy deficit.
  4. The real-life impact on children, the old and the ill when the power goes down in major cities.

Sakharuk described the situation as “the biggest energy crisis in the history of Ukrainian state since independence,” revealing that half of Ukraine’s pre-war generation capacity has been damaged or destroyed by russian attacks. russian attacks have damaged or destroyed 90% of DTEK’s thermal power capacity.