“Maria Tsaturyan, former head of the press service of NEC “Ukrenergo”, analyzed the causes of a large-scale energy failure in Berlin, where 45 thousand households were left without electricity and heat due to the burning of cables by extremists of the Vulkangruppe group. This is stated in her Facebook post. The expert notes that the European model of infrastructure management, which for decades was built on the principles of economic expediency and the assumption of eternal”, — write on: ua.news
Maria Tsaturyan, former head of the press service of NEC “Ukrenergo”, analyzed the causes of a large-scale energy failure in Berlin, where 45 thousand households were left without electricity and heat due to the burning of cables by extremists of the Vulkangruppe group.
This is stated in her Facebook post.
The expert notes that the European model of infrastructure management, which for decades was built on the principles of economic expediency and the assumption of eternal peace, turned out to be completely unprepared for modern hybrid threats. Unlike Ukrainian energy workers, who learned how to restore power in extreme conditions in a matter of hours, the Berlin operator Stromnetz Berlin predicts repair work lasting at least until January 8.
The main factors of the vulnerability of European networks are their technological complexity and the specifics of laying communications underground. In Germany, 70 to 90 percent of the distribution lines are laid in tunnels, which often contain electrical networks, heat lines and water lines in the same cable channel. This means that point arson, carried out by inexpensive means, is able to disable an entire power plant, leaving people not only without electricity, but also without basic utilities during the winter period. At the same time, the cost of construction and repair time of such underground facilities is several times higher than similar indicators for overhead lines used in Ukraine.
An additional risk is excessive automation and minimal physical protection of critical infrastructure facilities. Most high-voltage substations in the EU are remotely controlled and protected only by light fences, making them easy targets for vandals or Russian agents seeking to destabilize Europe. The lack of on-staff repair crews and reliance on outsourcing further slows crisis response. However, after a series of blackouts in 2025 in the Iberian Peninsula and the current situation in Germany, European countries began to revise their security standards, increasingly turning to the unique Ukrainian experience of protecting the power system.
We will remind you that a cable terminal caught fire in Berlin, leaving about 50,000 homes in the Lichterfelde district without electricity. The police are considering the version of possible arson. The fire also affected thousands of commercial facilities and could disrupt the operation of mobile communications and telephones.
In Germany, the ultra-left extremist group “Vulkan” claimed responsibility for setting fire to the cable bridge over the Teltovsky Canal, leaving part of Berlin without electricity on Saturday, January 3.
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