Ukrenergo: Russian Strikes Hit Grids in Eight Regions

Ukraine's national grid operator, Ukrenergo, confirmed that Russian forces attacked energy infrastructure in eight oblasts during the night of October 26 and 27. The Ministry of Energy verified the strikes, which targeted the power sector in Khmelnytskyi Oblast and left consumers in Vinnytsia, Dnipropetrovsk, Donetsk, Chernihiv, Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, and Sumy without electricity.

Emergency repair teams began working at the affected sites as soon as security conditions permitted. In response to the damage, Ukrenergo implemented hourly outage schedules covering up to 2.5 queues. A queue represents a specific group of households and businesses with a defined megawatt usage, and the Dispatch Centre determines how many queues are required in each region to balance supply shortfalls.

Under a Cabinet of Ministers resolution, critical infrastructure and industrial companies that import at least 60% of their energy are exempt from disconnection. For all other consumer categories in the affected areas, the restrictions remain in force until the end of the day. This means residents in those regions could face power cuts lasting between eight and 12 hours daily.

Electricity consumption dropped by 1.36% on the morning of October 27 compared to the same hour the previous day. Authorities attribute this decline to new forced limits on usage following the strikes. Ukrenergo and the Ministry of Energy are urging citizens to reduce the use of high-power appliances during peak hours, defined as 16:00 to 22:00, to prevent system overloads and further accidents.

The situation remains volatile. Officials warned that the scale of outages could expand if Russia executes additional attacks on the energy system. In Sumy Oblast, the city of Konotop has been without power for a fourth consecutive day following strikes on the night of October 23 and 24. No forecast for the return of electricity has been issued for that location.

The latest strikes add to existing strain on the grid. Regional operator Khmelnytskoblenergo reported specific damage to its sector, contributing to the broader network of disruptions across the seven other affected oblasts. The combination of physical damage and mandatory load-shedding is currently driving the reduced consumption figures recorded this morning.