Siobhán O'Grady and Serhii Korolchuk of the Washington Post visited and reported on a DTEK thermal power plant this month, one of several severely damaged in recent russian attacks.
"The fact is that we missed several missiles and drones and [they] have such damage — meaning that definitely we don't have enough air defense," DTEK CEO Maxim Timchenko, said in an interview at the plant on Tuesday. "We invest a lot of effort, a lot of money, and time to restore it. But it can be destroyed … after one attack."
Last month's strikes, which simultaneously hit numerous energy infrastructure sites across Ukraine, obliterated 80 percent of capacity at DTEK's thermal power plants. The newspaper stated that it could take many months, if not longer, to fix the damage, even with the right supplies. Such attacks, which are deeply debilitating to Ukraine's already war-ravaged economy, are nearly impossible to repel because Ukraine lacks adequate air defenses, the Post reported.
The Washington Post also said that DTEK has used almost all of its backup equipment to repair damage after other Russian strikes, making the current repair efforts even more complicated. Even amid the constant risk of more strikes, employees are already cleaning and repairing what they can.
DTEK is rebuilding and restoring, but as highlighted by the Washington Post, repeated attacks underscore Ukraine's critical need for fresh air defense systems and emergency energy equipment from allies as soon as possible.
Read the full article on the Washington Post website (paywall).
