On the morning of November 8, the Kiev government said that a major Russian attack targeted Ukraine's energy infrastructure, causing emergency power outages in some areas. These intensifying attacks are raising concerns about a worst scenario as the cold winter approaches.
Ukrainian Energy Minister Svitlana Grynchuk said that Russia is launching a massive attack on Ukrainian energy infrastructure. She said emergency power outages have been imposed in some areas but asserted that the situation will stabilize and "regardless of the opponent's plans, Ukraine will have light and warm air this winter".
During the night, airstrike warnings were activated across Ukraine. Authorities in the northeastern Kharkiv and southern Odesa regions have reported drone strikes on energy facilities. In the eastern city of Dnipro, a drone crashed into a 9-storey building, injuring six people, including a child. In the capital Kiev, debris has been reported and has been reported and caused fire at two locations.
The biggest concern now is that Russia seems to be changing tactics. In recent months, Moscow has escalated attacks targeting natural gas infrastructure, which is the main fuel for heating in Ukraine. The Kiev Economic School estimates that the attacks have stopped half of Ukraine's natural gas production.
Experts warn that Ukraine is at risk of widespread loss of heating systems. Oleksandr Kharchenko, a leading Ukrainian energy expert, has given a scary scenario. He warned that if Kiev's two main power and heating plants stop operating for more than 3 days when the temperature drops to -10 degrees Celsius, the entire heating system of the capital could freeze and break down completely, which could not be restored.
The attack on Ukraine's power grid and heating systems has dragged on for nearly four years of the conflict, destroying much of the country's critical civil infrastructure.
Ukraine has also stepped up attacks on Russian oil depots and refineries in recent months, cutting off oil revenue and causing fuel shortages for Moscow.
On the evening of November 7, a drone attack on energy infrastructure in the Volgograd region of southern Russia also caused widespread power outages.
