Largest Ukrainian steel maker halts operations due to Russia’s massive strike on energy sector
Illustrative photo: Zaporizhstal left without power after another enemy attack on the energy sector (Getty Images)
The Zaporizhstal steelworks was forced to halt production as a result of Russia’s massive strike on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, according to a statement by the company on Facebook.
"On January 7, a blackout occurred in the Zaporizhzhia region as a result of a massive enemy drone attack on Ukraine’s energy sector. Zaporizhstal, like other electricity consumers in the region, lost its external power supply. As a result, the plant was forced to suspend all production processes," the statement said.
It is noted that the company responded promptly to the power outage by implementing anti-crisis measures to ensure the safe shutdown of equipment.
"Currently, the company’s staff is working to stabilize the internal power grid," the company said.
Scheduled maintenance work is ongoing to prepare for a restart of production, which will become possible once the external power supply is restored.
Zaporizhstal power outage
On December 23, Zaporizhstal was completely cut off from power supply as a result of massive Russian strikes on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure. This led to an emergency shutdown of production.
RBC-Ukraine previously reported that on January 7 and 8, Russian forces carried out massive attacks on energy infrastructure in the Dnipropetrovsk and Zaporizhzhia regions.
As a result of the strikes, large-scale power outages were recorded in both regions. Due to the critical situation, "points of invincibility" began to be set up in cities, and local residents were urged to stock up on water.
