Kyiv faces critical power shortages as Russian strikes hit grid; outage schedules extended to 6 November

In brief

• Zelensky says Kyiv faces the hardest power situation of any region because of Russian strikes and weak local preparation.
• Scheduled outages of 2.5 to 4 queues apply across Ukraine on 6 November, with industrial power limits.
• Emergency outages have hit parts of Kyiv and several oblasts, with the grid under repeated attack.
• An energy expert says Kyiv is unlikely to face outages longer than 12 hours a day, even in a severe case.

Kyiv's power crisis

President Volodymyr Zelensky told a TSN correspondent that Kyiv is in the hardest position of all regions, both because of the number of Russian strikes and because local authorities were not prepared enough for their consequences ("Одних слів недостатньо": Зеленський пояснив, чому в Києві найскладніша ситуація зі світлом – TSN). He said Russian forces are deliberately hitting power networks to cut the link between generation and consumers, so the capital cannot receive or use the electricity it needs. Zelensky said officials hold daily meetings to monitor repairs and that the prime minister and energy minister were told to bring in Kyiv's city leadership and the water utility.

Scheduled outages on Friday

Ukrenergo announced that on Friday, 6 November, restrictions will apply in parts of Ukraine around the clock, from 00:00 to 23:59. Households and other consumers face hourly outage schedules of 2.5 to 4 queues, and industry faces capacity limits (Графіки відключень 6 листопада: хто буде без світла у пʼятницю – UNIAN) (Відключення світла посилюються: які графіки застосують 6 листопада – TSN). The grid operator said the situation may change and urged people to follow notices from their regional distribution companies and to use power sparingly when it is available.

Emergency outages

On 5 November, emergency cuts were applied in parts of the Sviatoshynskyi, Shevchenkivskyi and Podilskyi districts of Kyiv, and published schedules stopped applying in Kyiv Oblast (Графіки не діють: у Києві та низці областей запровадили екстрені відключення світла – UNIAN). Emergency outages were also ordered in Zhytomyr, Cherkasy, Poltava, Chernihiv and Sumy oblasts. Officials said that during emergency cuts the schedules do not apply. In Zhytomyr, authorities introduced strict savings measures, switching off street lighting and halting trolleybus and tram services.

Why power keeps going off and on

The Ministry of Energy said emergency cuts are lifted and then reintroduced because Russian strikes damage the grid. After an attack, dispatchers must cut off damaged sections within minutes to prevent larger accidents, so advance warning is not possible (Світло повернули — і знову відключили: у Міненерго пояснили, що відбувається з енергетикою – TSN). Repairs can take a long time, since each strike adds damage and Russia uses repeat strikes, forcing repair crews to wait for air alerts to end. Once the system stabilizes, scheduled outages replace emergency ones.

DTEK said the problem is not a lack of preparation but a shift in Russian tactics and a much higher intensity of attacks. It reported 78 strikes on energy facilities in the last three days, compared with 11 massed attacks on the system across all of 2022 (Чи дійсно енергетики не готувалися до нових ударів РФ: у ДТЕК пояснили, чому зі світлом стало гірше – TSN).

Outlook for Kyiv

Energy expert Oleksandr Kharchenko said Kyiv is not expected to face outages lasting a full day or 36 hours, even in the worst case. Under serious damage, he said, supply could fall to 4 to 8 hours a day, and planned limits would unlikely exceed 12 hours a day (Київ без світла на півтори доби?: експерт оцінив найгірший сценарій відключень – TSN). He estimated that urgent repairs after a strike could take about 6 to 8 hours.

Foreign help

Zelensky asked countries in Latin America and Spain to urgently send electrical equipment, including transformers, power cables and generators, to help restore damaged stations and networks. He made the request at the 30th Ibero-American Summit (Зеленський звернувся до країн Латинської Америки по допомогу з електричним обладнанням – UNIAN).

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