Ukrainian energy workers carry out repairs despite Russia’s pounding of the country’s power grid

Article content

On a bright winter’s day, workers at a Ukrainian thermal power plant repair its badly damaged equipment, with drops of water seeping from melting snow through large holes in its crumbling roof.

Article content

Article content

Several weeks ago, the facility was targeted by a Russian air attack that left burn marks, shrapnel scars on the walls, and missile fragments scattered throughout the production floor.

“This is our life now. Workers at a thermal power plant that is supposed to produce electricity are walking on frozen floors and using firewood to keep warm,” Oleksandr, 52, head of the production management department, told The Associated Press, speaking on the condition that only his first name be used because of concerns. A wish.

Article content

Repeated Russian strikes on infrastructure have seriously affected Ukraine’s energy sector, frequently resulting in power outages across the country. On Thursday, Moscow launched another large-scale air attack. Ukrainian authorities said nearly 200 drones and missiles targeted infrastructure, cutting off power to more than a million people.

The amount of work being done to reform this sector is huge. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said last September that since the start of the large-scale Russian invasion in 2022, the G7 and other allied countries have allocated more than $4 billion in energy aid to Ukraine.

Oleksandr, who works at a power plant run by DTEK, Ukraine’s largest private energy company, says that since the plant was first attacked in November 2022, it has been unable to return to full capacity due to constant strikes that have left vital equipment in ruins. The exact location of the factory visited by the AP, details of the damage and even the last names of the workers cannot be revealed for fear that such information could help Russia coordinate future attacks.

Article content

Article content

DTEK operated about 20% of Ukraine’s electricity production before the full-scale invasion, but that number has fallen to 12% since the outbreak of war. The company says its facilities have been attacked by Russia nearly 200 times since 2022. They also say that nearly 90% of the company’s infrastructure was destroyed or damaged, and that was before Russia launched its large-scale attack on November 17.

Oleksandr says he expects repairs at the station to continue through the winter and into next year, and perhaps much further. Further complicating the plant’s repair efforts is the fact that some vital equipment was manufactured in the Soviet Union and replacement parts are now difficult to find. To alleviate this problem, some former Soviet countries, now allies of Ukraine, helped provide equipment.

“Western countries will probably also help us with equipment, but their power networks have different characteristics,” Oleksandr said.

Only half of DTEK’s generating capacity has been restored from the first attacks on its plants in November 2022 until the latest large-scale strike. Earlier this week, the European Commission and the US government announced a donation of $112 million in equipment and construction materials to help DTEK prepare for the winter.

Article content

As the war enters its third year, workers at the DTEK factory adapt to the harsh reality of their daily lives. They know the protocols by heart. Not everyone can take shelter during a weather alert. A minimum crew must remain in the control room to supervise operations, exposing them to the risk of a direct hit.

Dmytro, 41, a power unit operator at the station, said: “You have to sit and wait while monitoring the trajectories of anything that has been launched, but the power units keep working so we cannot leave, we stay in the control room.”

Despite the challenges, Dmytro and his colleagues continue to move forward, driven by the mission to keep the lights on in their city and region during the winter months.

“Who will do that if not us? I also have family waiting for me at home, but if we all leave and the equipment breaks down, the responsibility will fall on us, and the whole city will lose electricity and heat.”

He added: “Some are risking (their lives) on the front line, while here we have our own energy front.”

Article content