On April 6, Ukraine’s state energy company, Ukrenergo, announced the implementation of emergency power outages in several regions due to a challenging situation in the energy system, exacerbated by Russian shelling.
Ukrenergo indicated that once the situation stabilizes, these emergency outages will transition to scheduled hourly disconnections. However, specific regions affected by these limitations were not disclosed.
Earlier reports from DTEK, a major energy provider, confirmed emergency outages in Kyiv, while Zhytomyroblenergo reported similar measures in the Zhytomyr region. As of the morning of April 6, Ukrenergo noted power disruptions in Chernihiv, Sumy, Kharkiv, Odesa, and Kherson regions due to attacks on energy infrastructure.
The most severe conditions were reported in Chernihiv Oblast, where damage to several energy facilities has resulted in widespread power outages. According to Chernihivoblenergo, an important energy facility in the Nizhyn district was damaged during a Russian attack, leaving 340,000 customers without power in the cities of Chernihiv and Pryluky, as well as surrounding areas. Subsequently, over 76,000 additional customers in Chernihiv and Korukivka districts also experienced outages.
Vyacheslav Chaus, the head of the Chernihiv Regional Military Administration, reported that Russian forces targeted energy facilities in Chernihiv Oblast overnight, resulting in four strikes.
Since the onset of the full-scale invasion in February 2022, Russia has consistently targeted Ukraine’s energy infrastructure. Following the onset of autumn in 2025, these attacks intensified, leading to a significant gap between energy generation capacity and consumption needs, which caused prolonged power outages. While many regions had implemented power cut schedules, the arrival of spring and increased generation from solar power plants had previously eased these restrictions.
On March 24, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that Russian forces continue their operations aimed at undermining Ukraine’s energy system.
The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) has classified Russia’s attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure as crimes against humanity. As of this year’s heating season, the SBU documented at least 256 aerial assaults on energy facilities and heating systems across Ukraine.
In early February 2026, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov claimed that Russia had not initiated attacks on civilian infrastructure, asserting that Ukraine had struck first against its energy facilities.
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Emergency power outages have been enacted in various regions of Ukraine due to ongoing attacks on energy infrastructure by Russian forces. The situation remains critical, particularly in Chernihiv Oblast, where significant damage has left hundreds of thousands without power.