Russia launches one of its largest attacks of the year on Ukraine’s power grid, Ukrenergo says

Russia has been carrying out one of its largest attacks of the year on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure since the night of 2–3 November, forcing emergency power cuts in the capital and a number of regions, the national grid operator Ukrenergo said on Tuesday.

According to Ukrainska Pravda, Ukrenergo said Russian forces had deliberately struck energy facilities more than 20 times in the past 24 hours, using what it called an unprecedented number of weapons. The company said the damage to the grid was significant, and that thousands of power engineers had been working since the night to repair it, with critical infrastructure to be reconnected first.

Weapons and targets

Ukrenergo chief executive Vitalii Zaichenko told The Kyiv Independent that officials had recorded one of the largest waves of Russian ballistic missiles aimed at critical infrastructure. Moscow also used cruise missiles, jet-powered drones and propeller-driven drones, he said. The newspaper reported that substations, transmission systems and power plants were hit across 10 oblasts, and that the attack was still going on when it published.

Ukraine’s Energy Ministry said extensive damage was recorded in the Vinnytsia, Zhytomyr and Kharkiv regions. DTEK, the country’s largest private energy company, described one of the most serious attacks ever on its facilities. It said generation had stopped at three of its thermal power plants and that grid infrastructure in Odesa Oblast was damaged. DTEK chief executive Maxim Timchenko said Russia was dangerously escalating its efforts to deprive Ukrainians of essential services this winter.

Outages and water supply

Ukrainska Pravda reported that on the morning of 3 November, emergency outages were applied in Kyiv and six oblasts because of equipment damage and voltage drops in the high-voltage network. In other areas, scheduled cuts left some consumers without electricity for more than 12 hours. The outlet described these as the first outages of such scale this autumn.

Sumy and Poltava regions were placed on a special emergency schedule, with consumers not told how long the blackouts would last. The Kyiv Independent added that outages also affected Chernihiv, Cherkasy and Kharkiv regions. In Kyiv, strikes left major water supply facilities without power, interrupting water service, according to Ukrainska Pravda.

Winter fears

The attack comes as Ukraine’s government prepares for another energy crisis after the 2025–2026 winter, the hardest of the war so far, when millions were left without heating and electricity in freezing temperatures, The Kyiv Independent said. The paper noted that Russia has renewed mass strikes on energy sites since the end of summer, and that Kyiv is especially exposed as Moscow tries to cut it off from power supplies. It also reported that officials did not fully prepare the city earlier this year, and that many residents have begun leaving the capital.

Ukrenergo said all services were coordinating to stabilise the system as quickly as possible. It remains unclear how long the attack will continue and when normal supply can be restored in the worst-hit regions.