Ukraine runs out of power transformers, critical energy supplies

Ukraine’s energy sector has exhausted its stocks of equipment and essential supplies, leaving no power transformers or other critical materials available, Bloomberg reports. 

According to the European Union, if attacks continue at the current pace, electricity supply could be cut to the entire left-bank regions, home to around 15 million people, before 2022.

As Russia’s war in Ukraine nears its fourth year, attacks on energy infrastructure have intensified, particularly from September through December, putting immense pressure on Ukraine’s government, energy companies, and local authorities to conduct emergency repairs and maintain public morale. 

Last week, large-scale missile and drone strikes hit power-grid facilities in the Dnipropetrovsk region, causing blackouts across entire cities and in neighbouring Zaporizhzhia. Russian forces then targeted energy infrastructure in Kyiv and surrounding areas, leaving households without electricity, heating, and in some cases, water.

Ukraine’s Energy Minister Denys Shmyhal told the Verkhovna Rada that in 2025 alone, Russian forces carried out over 600 targeted combined attacks on the country’s energy sector. 

“Every power plant in Ukraine has been hit at least once during the war, with thousands of megawatts of generation lost. Attacks are daily and intensifying,” Shmyhal said, highlighting severe electricity shortages in Kyiv, Odessa, Dnipropetrovsk, Kharkiv, and front-line regions. 

Kyiv’s mayor, Vitali Klitschko, noted that on the night of January 13, even critical infrastructure faced electricity shortages due to ongoing strikes.

The blackouts have disrupted daily life and commerce, with many Kyiv restaurants temporarily halting operations, according to delivery service Bolt Food. 

Some establishments reported near-continuous power outages, making it impossible to prepare orders, though they plan to resume partially when electricity is restored.

By Jeyhun Aghazada