KYIV, Jan 17 (Reuters) – President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Saturday he had ordered imports of electricity and additional power equipment to be accelerated as much as possible as Ukraine faces its worst wartime energy crisis.
The government has declared an energy emergency as the system, crippled by Russia’s relentless attacks, can only meet 60% of electricity demand. Unseasonably cold temperatures exacerbated the situation.
“All relevant decisions have been put in place and the increase in imports must proceed immediately,” Zelensky posted on X after meeting with senior government and military officials.
The Energy Department said most areas had planned power outages. The situation was the most challenging in and around the capital, Kyiv, where residents faced prolonged power outages, dozens of apartment buildings without heating and temperatures plunging to 16 degrees Celsius (3 degrees Fahrenheit).
Prime Minister Yulia Sviridenko said the government and state energy company Naftogaz had discussed increasing gas imports this year, but she gave no details on the volumes.
Last year, Naftogaz imported 5.7 billion cubic meters of natural gas using state financing and funds provided by international partners, she said.
Ukraine was forced to start importing natural gas in the spring of 2025 due to hundreds of Russian drone and missile attacks on natural gas production facilities.
Naftogaz said Russia had carried out six attacks on its gas production facilities this week alone.
(Reporting by Olena Harmash; Editing by Toby Chopra and Kevin Liffey)
