Russia has launched over 1,000 missiles at Ukraine’s energy facilities while occupying more than 18 GW of the country’s power capacity, including the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, the largest in Europe, said the Ukrainian Ministry of Energy on 19 November, marking 1000 days of Russia’s war.
Since the onset of the all-out war in 2022, Russia has systematically targeted Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, inflicting severe damage and disruption. One of the most severe attacks occurred on 26 August, 2024, when Russia launched 236 missiles and drones, leading to immediate power outages for around 4 million Ukrainians across 12 regions.
“In 2024 alone, the Russians destroyed or damaged over 9 GW of capacity—equivalent to the peak consumption of countries like the Netherlands or Finland. Despite the attacks, Ukraine’s energy system continues to function, with energy workers tirelessly restoring power to homes,” the ministry stated.
Ukrainian authorities emphasized that the country’s energy system has shown independence from Russia and resilience for 1,000 days. On the night of 24 February 2022, Ukraine disconnected from the Russian and Belarusian energy systems, joining the European ENTSO-E grid by 16 March 2022, thereby enhancing its energy security.
In April 2022, Ukraine created the Energy Support Fund to consolidate support from international partners to aid Ukrainian workers in maintaining stable power supplies during Russia’s armed aggression.
The fund has accumulated over €700 million for restoring power facilities. To date, Ukraine has received over 19,000 tons of humanitarian aid from 36 countries to stabilize its energy system.
On 17 November, Russian forces again attacked power generation and transmission facilities across Ukraine. The country’s air defenses tracked 210 aerial targets – 120 missiles and 90 drones. Energy shutdowns has been introduced across Ukraine, including its capital, Kyiv.
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