Russia launched a new series of missile and drone airstrikes against Ukraine last night and caused damage to energy facilities in the southeastern and western parts of the country, which caused the need to import record amounts of electricity, reported Reuters, quoted by BTA.
At least two employees were injured in the strikes.
This is the second massive Russian attack on Ukrainian energy infrastructure this week.
The national electricity system operator "Ukrenergo" reported damage to its facilities in Zaporizhzhia and Lviv region. A gas transmission facility in western Ukraine was also hit.
"After eight massive attacks by the enemy on the energy system since March, the situation in the energy sector remains dire," Ukraine's Energy Ministry said. After last night's Russian attack, Ukraine will import a record 33,559 megawatt hours (MWh) of electricity, the department adds. In addition, the government will have to extend the duration of planned power outages across the country by several hours.
Earlier today, the Ukrainian Air Force announced that its air defense forces shot down 12 of a total of 16 Russian missiles, as well as all 13 drones that attacked the country.
Fire services in Zaporizhia and Lviv are fighting the flames, and repair teams are in a hurry to repair the damage to the energy equipment.
In the western Ukrainian city of Ivano-Frankivsk, there was damage to the building of the National Technical University of Oil and Gas, as well as 14 commercial and residential buildings.
"We can say with certainty that the enemy will not stop. "Ukraine needs air defense systems," he said in "Telegram". the governor of Zaporozhye region Ivan Fedorov.
Moscow, for its part, said its airstrikes against Ukrainian energy infrastructure were in response to Ukrainian drone strikes on Russian territory.
Since March, Russian forces have stepped up their bombardment of Ukraine's energy system, knocking out about half of the country's production capacity and triggering a major energy blackout, Reuters notes.