Half of Kiev blacked out – warning of severe winter

TT

Published 2025-12-09 17.44

 

During periods, only the headlights of cars are lit in the Ukrainian capital Kiev due to the blackout. Here is a picture from December 3. Photo: Efrem Lukatsky/AP/TT

Around half of the households in the Ukrainian capital region are without power as a result of Russian attacks on the country's energy infrastructure.

The country's state gas company is also warning of a long cold winter.

- The destruction and loss of Ukrainian gas production is significant. And restoring production will take a long time, says Serhiy Koretsky, CEO of Naftogaz, to the AFP news agency.

According to him, Russia's methodical attacks on gas and energy facilities have begun earlier and more intensively than in previous war winters, which sets the stage for this year's winter to "definitely be more difficult".

Russian attacks have caused damage worth the equivalent of ten billion kronor to the gas network, damage that at some facilities could take a couple of years to repair, according to Naftogaz.

- The only purpose of these manic terrorist attacks on the gas infrastructure is to make Ukrainians panic, to make Ukraine go without gas, electricity and heat, Serhiy Koretskyj told AFP.

Right now, large parts of Ukraine are also without power for periods. In Kiev, around 50 percent of households are without electricity.

"The situation in Kiev is still one of the most difficult," writes the Ukrainian Ministry of Energy on Telegram.

These are controlled outages that are carried out as a preventive measure according to a schedule to relieve the pressure on the pressured system.