Russia destroys 8.5 GW of Ukraine’s power generation, $1 billion urgently needed
Photo: Energy facility damaged by Russia (t.me/dtek_ua)
Since October 2025, Russia has damaged around 8.5 GW of Ukraine’s power generation, including thermal and hydropower plants. To cover the shortfall and restore destroyed facilities, the country urgently needs $1 billion in assistance, stated Oleksii Sobolev, Minister of Economy, Environment and Agriculture of Ukraine, on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos.
According to Sobolev, some damaged facilities were repaired, but were later hit again by Russian strikes. This pattern has become systematic.
The minister emphasized that protecting energy infrastructure would be far more cost-effective than repeatedly rebuilding it, but Ukraine lacks sufficient air defense systems.
To compensate for the shortfall, Ukraine has been forced to import record volumes of electricity from Europe — up to 1.9 GW.
Russia's attacks during this winter, one of the coldest in recent years, have led to electricity, water and heating outages in thousands of homes in Dnipro, Zaporizhzhia, and Kyiv.
Sobolev noted that the government is trying to direct as much electricity as possible to households, but energy resources are also critically needed by businesses.
"We need to get through this part of the harsh winter. To do that, we need equipment, first and foremost. Equipment reserves are exhausted. Immediate emergency needs exceed $1 billion — power transformers, mobile substations, grid equipment, cables, rapid deployment backup solutions," the minister said.
According to him, generators with a combined capacity of more than 1 GW are already operating in Ukraine, helping to keep businesses running. However, amid severe frost, this is not enough, and the number of such installations must be increased.
Strikes on Ukraine’s energy sector
Since autumn 2025, Russia has resumed its tactic of targeting Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, leaving many Ukrainian cities facing blackouts.
In particular, Kyiv and the Kyiv region were hit by two large-scale Russian attacks on energy facilities on January 9 and 13. Thousands of homes were left without heating, and emergency power outages were implemented in the capital and surrounding areas, which remain in effect to this day.
Previously, analysts from the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) reported that Russia is attempting to fragment Ukraine’s energy system and create so-called energy islands cut off from electricity generation and transmission.
Ukraine’s military intelligence has also warned that Russia is seeking to disconnect Ukrainian nuclear power plants from the energy grid to leave the country without electricity and heat.
After a new missile and drone attack by Russia, the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant lost its external power supply. Power lines supplying other nuclear plants were also damaged.
In addition, after a nighttime attack on January 20, thousands of homes in Kyiv were left without heating as temperatures dropped to -15°C.
For more details on the consequences of Russia’s latest massive strike, see the material by RBC-Ukraine.
