On a clear winter’s day, workers at a Ukrainian power plant repair its damaged equipment as water droplets from melting snow seep through holes in its cracked roof.
Several weeks ago, the area was targeted by a Russian air strike that left burn marks, blast marks on the walls, and missile fragments scattered across the building.
“This is our life. The workers at the thermal power plant that has to generate electricity are walking on the icy floor and using wood to keep warm,” Oleksandr, 55, head of the Production Management Department, told The Associated Press. He spoke on the condition that only his first name be used when talking about security.
Repeated Russian strikes on infrastructure have severely disrupted Ukraine’s power sector, often causing blackouts across the country. On Thursday, Moscow launched another massive airstrike. Ukrainian authorities said at least 200 drones and missiles targeted buildings, disrupting electricity for more than a million people.
The level of ongoing maintenance work is a major part. Since Russia’s entry into force in 2022, the G7 and other allied countries have provided more than $4 billion in energy aid to Ukraine, United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in September.
Oleksandr, who works at the power plant operated by Ukraine’s largest private company, DTEK, says that since the station was first attacked in November 2022, it has not been able to return to full capacity due to continuous strikes that have left important equipment in ruins. The exact location of the plant visited by the AP, details of the damage and even the last names of the workers cannot be released for fear that this information could help Russia plan future attacks.
DTEK served around 20% of Ukraine’s electricity production before entering full scale, but this figure has dropped to 12% since the start of the war. The company says that its facilities have been attacked by Russia almost 200 times since 2022. They also say that almost 90% of the company’s facilities have been destroyed or damaged and that was before Russia launched its big attack on Nov 17.
Oleksandr says he hopes that repairs at the station will continue through the winter and into next year, and possibly far. Repair efforts at the plant are complicated by the fact that some of the key equipment was made in the Soviet Union and finding parts has become difficult. To mitigate this, some former Soviet states that are now part of Ukraine have helped distribute equipment.