UPDATE - Ukraine says Russian airstrikes target energy facilities, infrastructure

UPDATES WITH FURTHER INFORMATION; MINOR EDITS

By Burc Eruygur

ISTANBUL (AA) - Ukraine said on Saturday that Russian airstrikes targeted energy facilities and infrastructure in the country in a “massive” attack.

Energy Minister Denys Shmyhal said in a statement on Telegram that power substations and 750 kV and 330 kV overhead lines, which he described as the basis of the country’s power grid, were under attack.

Stating the strikes also hit the Burshtyn and Dobrotvir thermal power plants in western Ukraine, Shmyhal said nuclear power plants in the country were forced to reduce generation capacity.

“As of now, 4.5–5 emergency outage schedules have been applied throughout Ukraine, and special emergency outage schedules are in place in the eastern and northern regions,” Shmyhal further said.

He went on to say that the attack is ongoing and energy workers are ready to begin restoration work as soon as the security situation allows.

The minister added that Ukraine’s power grid operator Ukrenergo requested emergency assistance from neighboring Poland amid the situation. The operator had earlier announced emergency outages in most regions.

"Due to significant damage, balancing of the power system is carried out by attracting electricity imports and applying restriction measures," the Ukrainian Energy Ministry said in a separate statement on the situation.

Ukrainian private energy provider DTEK also reported strikes on its thermal power stations in various regions, resulting in “significant” damage.

"Every day, Russia could choose real diplomacy, but it chooses new strikes. It is crucial that everyone who supports the trilateral negotiations respond to this," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on the US social media company X concerning the attack.

Expressing that damage has been reported in the country's Volyn, Ivano-Frankivsk, Lviv, and Rivne regions, Zelenskyy said there were also strikes in the Kyiv and Kharkiv regions.

"Moscow must be deprived of the ability to use the cold as leverage against Ukraine. This requires missiles for Patriot, NASAMS, and other systems. Every shipment helps us get through this winter," he added.

Ukraine's Air Force claimed in a later statement on Telegram that the country's air defenses shot down 388 out of 403 drones, as well as 24 out of 39 missiles, fired by Russia overnight.

Meanwhile, the Russian Defense Ministry said it launched airstrikes over the past day targeting "energy and transport infrastructure facilities" used by Ukraine's army, as well as "Ukrainian military-industrial complex enterprises that are fulfilling orders for the production of attack drones, and their storage and launch preparation sites at military airfields."