Overnight Russian attack forces Ukraine's nuclear plants to cut generation
Photo: Ukraine's nuclear power plants cut generation after Russia's overnight attack (Getty Images)
All of Ukraine's nuclear power plants were forced to reduce electricity generation as a result of Russia's massive overnight attack on February 7, according to the Ministry of Energy of Ukraine and IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi.
Read also: Russia shifts approach to hitting Ukraine's power system: What it means
"The enemy carried out a large-scale attack using drones and missiles on substations and 750 kV and 330 kV high-voltage transmission lines. As a result, nuclear power plants were forced to cut generation," the Ministry of Energy said.
The ministry added that, due to significant damage, the grid is being balanced through electricity imports and by introducing consumption restrictions.
Ukrenergo (Ukraine's state grid operator) ordered to increase the volume of power outages. Emergency outages have been introduced in most regions of the country.
The IAEA Director General also confirmed that Ukrainian nuclear plants again reduced output on Friday morning after renewed Russian strikes affected electrical substations and knocked out several power transmission lines.
During the attack, one reactor unit was disconnected from the grid due to voltage fluctuations, while the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant operated on diesel generators for about an hour.
Grossi reiterated his call for restraint, warning that further deterioration of the energy system poses a threat to nuclear safety.
Recent attack on Ukraine's energy sector
On February 7, Russian forces attacked Ukraine overnight with more than 400 drones and nearly 40 missiles of various types. The primary target was the energy grid, including generation facilities and distribution substations.
Damage was reported in several regions, along with injuries and widespread emergency power outages.
Western regions were hit hardest. Russians hit by missiles in at least the Khmelnytskyi, Chernivtsi, Ivano-Frankivsk, and Lviv regions.
The Ministry of Energy said Russian troops launched a massive strike on key energy infrastructure facilities, including high-voltage substations, power transmission lines, and thermal power plants. Ukraine requested emergency assistance from Poland.
At the same time, experts note that during today's attack, Russia changed its approach to striking Ukraine's energy system, once again seeking to disrupt the transmission of electricity from the country's western regions to the east.
