“At the same time, the government official noted that, given the scale of the Russian attacks on energy, “it is difficult to protect in such a way that there is no damage at all.””, — write: www.radiosvoboda.org
This was stated by the government official during a press conference with the Minister of Energy of Germany, Kateryna Reiche, RFE/RL correspondent reports.
“If it weren’t for the physical protection that was erected at the energy facilities, the strikes that we have now and the tactics of strikes by the Russians, we could have caused much more losses and we would have had many more blackouts and the situation would have been much more difficult,” Grynchuk said.
The minister added that the physical protection of the facilities and air defense “work harmoniously and effectively enough”, but given the massiveness of the Russian attacks, it is difficult to completely repulse the strikes without damage.
“That mass, when there are more than 100 or even under 200 drones against one object in combination with missiles, is very difficult to really protect in such a way that it does not cause any damage at all,” explained the Minister of Energy.
According to her, before the start of massive Russian attacks, expectations regarding the passing of the winter were positive, because “many generating capacities were repaired and the electricity transmission and distribution system was restored.”
Today, energy workers are working around the clock to repair the damage. At the same time, when asked by journalists about the percentage of destruction of energy facilities today, Grynchuk explained that it is “difficult to define.”
“To be honest, we are trying to immediately return to work those objects that are damaged. In our plans to restore those that were damaged in the last two attacks, we need several weeks. Therefore, the percentage changes every day. Everyone works around the clock to ensure that this percentage of readiness is always at a high level,” said the Minister of Energy.
She also added that thanks to partners, Ukraine is currently building up equipment reserves: “Looking at the intensity of the blows, we understand that we still need to strengthen in order to be ready for different scenarios.”
Previously, the mass media wrote about the alleged “lack of protection” at the capital’s thermal power plants. The KMDA denied this information. According to Petro Panteleev, deputy head of the KMDA, the Kyiv thermal power plants are equipped with the protection of the first stage in accordance with the requirements of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
Panteleev emphasized that detailed information on the state of protection of energy facilities cannot be made public due to security restrictions.
“Those who call themselves experts and comment on these issues are well aware of the ban on public disclosure of such data,” he noted.
The official called on media representatives and officials refrain from spreading unverified claims, especially regarding critical infrastructure facilities.
