Russians Attack Energy Facilities In Kharkiv Region More Than 50 Times

(MENAFN- UkrinForm) Oleksandr Kyshynskyi, deputy technical director for electrical distribution networks at JSC“Kharkivoblenergo,” reported this to a Ukrinform correspondent.

“There are facilities that have been attacked more than 50 times. And in some cases, the attacks only stopped after we halted restoration work. In other words, these were deliberate actions aimed at destroying the equipment repeatedly,” Kyshynskyi said.

According to him, the construction of protective structures around the facilities is ongoing in the region, with assistance from the Kharkiv Regional Military Administration.

“Experience shows that gabions provide protection against shrapnel. But now, the weapons the Russian Federation is using to strike can penetrate right into the structures. That's why work is underway at some substations to build more robust shelters-so-called sarcophagi. There have already been hits on such concrete structures, and so far the equipment remains intact,” Kyshynskyi noted.

Facilities are being restored, in part, thanks to humanitarian aid, since we're talking about expensive equipment-such as circuit breakers and transformers-which can take 6–9 months to manufacture.

“In my opinion, the most difficult part of the restoration is saving damaged equipment and 'repairing' it. Sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn't. In some cases, when the damage to a transformer is minor-such as to the cooling system-it can still be repaired. In all other cases, replacement is necessary,” Kyshynskyi noted.

Regional power company specialists continue to install transformers provided by Australia. The Kharkiv region has previously received significant assistance from this country.

“Australia provided us with vacuum circuit breakers, which we are installing on poles to mitigate the consequences and contain the damage. In other words, this switching device divides the line into several sections: not the entire line is shut down, but only the damaged section that came under fire or was simply damaged by weather conditions. In this way, this smart equipment allows the majority of consumers to still have power in the grid,” explained the deputy technical director.

According to him, aid from various international partners has been arriving since 2023.

“Even China supplied transformers-38 of them. We also received equipment from the Red Cross: excavators and drill-and-crane machines. If this equipment hadn't been provided, we would have faced significant challenges carrying out repair and restoration work. The aid continues to flow. And that's very good. Because, for example, in July,“Shahed” drones struck the Valkivskyi Regional Electric Network. A tower-also a humanitarian one-was destroyed; two drill-and-crane rigs were completely burned, as well as a passenger car; and a lot of standard crew vehicles-UAZs and flatbed trucks-were damaged.“Losing that much equipment in a single attack is a huge loss,” said Kishinsky.

Read also: Partners deliver additional €1.8 million worth of energy equipment to Odesa and Dnipropetrovsk regions

As previously reported, at the end of July, 250 power transformers were delivered to the Kharkiv region, provided with the support of the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade through the Ukraine Energy Support Fund; the total value of the aid exceeds 1.2 million euros.

Photo: Press Service of JSC“Kharkivoblenergo”

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