Ukraine’s energy recovers, no major imports needed

The Ukrainian energy system, which had been severely damaged by Russian missile attacks in recent weeks, is now nearly fully stabilised, with no major imports anticipated, according to a statement from the energy ministry on Sunday cited by Reuters.

In the wake of a series of Russian missile strikes on critical infrastructure, Ukraine’s electricity imports hit a record high at the end of March, causing blackouts in many parts of the country.

Since March 22, Russian forces have been launching almost daily attacks on Ukrainian thermal and hydropower stations as well as main networks, leading to these blackouts.

The ministry affirmed that Ukraine’s energy system is now “stable and balanced,” projecting power exports at 115 megawatt hours (MWh) on Sunday, while imports could total 1,179 MWh. This is a significant decrease from the record import of 18,649 MWh on March 26.

Ukrenergo’s chief, Volodymyr Kudrytskyi, told Reuters last week that despite the significant damage to the power system caused by Russian attacks, a total collapse was unlikely.