During the opening ceremony of the Ukraine Recovery Conference 2024 in Berlin, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy says that Ukraine aims to implement quick and cost-effective rebuilding of all energy facilities that can be rebuilt. He underlines that it is crucial to complete the process by winter.
"One of Putin's primary targets in Ukraine is the energy sector. From his early years in power, he has viewed energy resources, energy generation, and energy consumption as weapons, tools for influence, and subjugation of nations. Europe has faced this repeatedly," Zelenskyy said.
He noted that due to Russia's energy terror, Ukraine has lost 9 GW of capacity, while the peak energy consumption in Ukraine last winter was 18 GW.
"What does 9 GW mean? Berlin's energy demand is about 2 GW, and Munich's is up to 3 GW. We have already lost several times more generation than the energy consumption of large cities," the Ukrainian president noted.
Zelenskyy emphasized that in the short term, there should be quick and inexpensive rebuilding of all energy facilities that can currently be rebuilt.
"By winter. This is so important. Over the next three to four months. We know how to ensure this. We ask you for equipment from your halted power plants and financial support. This will allow us to respond to the situation here and now, to maintain normal life," said the President of Ukraine.
Situation with electricity in Ukraine
In recent months, the Russian Federation has repeatedly terrorized Ukraine with massive shelling of the energy infrastructure, leading to the return of power outage schedules.
Initially, the restrictions applied to businesses, but later they were also introduced for residential consumers.
It is worth noting that recently, the Cabinet of Ministers tasked officials with reducing electricity consumption. According to this directive, ministries, central executive bodies, and regional state administrations must refrain from using air conditioners.
At the same time, YASNO (major electricity supplier) CEO Serhii Kovalenko also urged Ukrainians to limit the use of air conditioners, as there is a threat of power outages even for critical infrastructure.