“Crippling strikes”: Russia destroyed key power plant in Kyiv oblast and aims to plunge Ukrainian cities into darkness (updated)

Russians destroyed entirely the Trypillia Thermal Power Plant (TPP) in Kyiv Oblast and damaged other critical infrastructure with their large-scale combined attack on the night of 10-11 April, according to Andriy Hota, chairman of the supervisory board of Centrenergo for the news agency Interfax-Ukraine and Ukrainian media. Centrenergo lost 100% of its generation after the destruction of Trypillia TPP.

Trypillia Thermal Power Plant/ Video screenshot

According to Mykola Oleshchuk, Commander of Ukraine’s Air Force, the air defence destroyed 57 of the 82 aerial targets launched by the Russians, inter alia, 37 of 40 Shahed-136/131.

As a result of that attack, fires also broke out at energy facilities in Lviv, Kharkiv, Odesa, Zaporizhzhia oblasts. The debris of downed drones fell in Mykolaiv Oblast.

Centrenergo reportedly now lost 100% of its generation after the earlier destruction of Zmiyiv TPP in Kharkiv Oblast and Vuhlehirsk TPP in Donetsk Oblast by Russian troops.

Trypillia TPP is the most powerful power plant in Kyiv Oblast. It is the largest electricity supplier to Kyiv, Cherkasy and Zhytomyr oblasts. The enterprise spans an area of 281.3 hectares. 

A slight shortage is possible from 7 to 10 p. m., since the loss of the Trypillia TPP means a decrease in internal capacity to cover consumption during peak hours, the Ukrenergo’s press service reported on April 11. The activity of solar generation decreases in the evening, and the internal capacity is not enough to cover consumption, plus there is no electricity import in the required volumes.

The company also noted that the most challenging situation with power supply is after the attack in Kharkiv and Kharkiv Oblast, where at least ten strikes were recorded during the Russian mass attack. In addition, the situation is unpredictable in terms of the fact that the Russians are not giving up their attempts to cut off Kharkiv from the power system.

The aggressor country is attempting to cripple Kharkiv’s infrastructure and plunge the city into darkness”, the Deputy Head of Presidential Office Oleksiy Kuleba said on Telegram.

According to the Mayor of Kharkiv Ihor Terekhov, Russians damaged the TPP that powers the city, completely destroyed the transformer substation.

More than 200,000 people in the Kharkiv region have reportedly been left without electricity due to power outages.

Kharkiv

Kharkiv’s subway continues to operate as a shelter, while power engineers and specialized services assess the aftermath of the Russian attack.

Four civilians were injured in a launched by Russian Armed Forces at approximately 16:00 airial bomb on the village of Velyki Prokhody in Kharkiv Oblast, Oblast Prosecutor’s Office reported on Telegram. . Several residential buildings and outbuildings were damaged. There was fire.

“A 75-year-old man was admitted to hospital after receiving shrapnel wounds. Two women have an acute stress reaction. Another resident sustained minor injuries, and doctors assisted her on the spot,” the regional Prosecutor’s Office statement said.

“Enemy cruise missiles of various types and UAVs attacked two critical energy infrast/ructure facilities in Lviv Oblast. These are a gas distribution infrastructure facility in Stryi district and an electricity substation in the Chervonohrad district. Fires broke out. Firefighters quickly extinguished them,” Maksym Kozytskyi, the Head of Lviv Oblast Military Administration reported.

He also added that there were no casualties, and all critical infrastructure systems in Lviv Oblast are operating normally after the Kidzhal rocket strikes.

Defence Forces of Ukraine’s South reported that in Odesa Oblast, debris from downed drones caused a fire at a power facility; the fire was quickly extinguished, and no one was injured.

Meanwhile, the Odesa regional prosecutor’s office reported the death toll from the Russian army’s attack on Odesa Oblast on April 10 has risen to five. A man who was seriously injured has died in the hospital. In addition, 14 people were injured; one man is in serious condition, and his legs were amputated.

Russian troops attacked Odesa with ballistic missiles on that day, first with Iskander-M. Transport infrastructure and nearby trucks were damaged in Odesa district.

Four people are dead and another five injured after a daytime Russian ballistic cruise strike on Mykolaiv, Governor Vitalyi Kim reported.

Poland scrambled aircraft as Russia struck Ukraine.

Responding to Russia’s extensive attacks across Ukraine, Patrick Thompson, Amnesty International’s Ukraine Researcher, said: “Russia has scaled up its relentless aggression against the civilian population and civilian infrastructure in Ukraine in recent days. The damage to civilian infrastructure has led to a fight for survival for Ukrainians, who have been learning to live in perpetual mortal danger and – quite literally – growing darkness.”

He added that attacks on several power facilities resulted in further suffering and disruption to Ukrainian civilians.

“Deliberately attacking civilian infrastructure, such as power stations and electricity supplies, and causing overwhelming harm to civilians is a violation of international humanitarian law,” he added.

Amnesty International called on Russia to end its aggression in Ukraine, including its unlawful attacks on infrastructure that Ukrainian civilians rely on in their daily lives.

International human rights organisation also stated that the international community must also reaffirm its commitment to repairing the harm and bringing those responsible for war crimes to justice.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine needs air defense systems and other defense support, “not turning a blind eye and long discussions”.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy

“We are grateful to everyone in the world who really effectively supports our Ukrainian struggle for life, to all the leaders who do not remain silent, who will continue to help us and condemn Russian terror,” he wrote.

Last week, Zelenskyy stated that Ukraine needs 25 Patriot anti-aircraft missile systems to close its territory from Russian air attacks fully.

European Parliament decided not to approve the budget of the EU Council until EU countries find additional Patriot missile systems for Ukraine, MEP and former Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt. He said that EU countries have hundreds of such systems, while Ukraine needs only seven. 515 parliamentarians supported the decision, and 62 were against it.

“Sorry to dash the hopes of Ukrainian media here, but the European Parliament deciding not to approve the discharge of the Council budget for 2022(!) to get the EU to send Patriots to Ukraine is and empty threat & pure political theatre. The discharge is the closing of accounts, and the cash is spent!” Europe Editor of the Radio Liberty Rikard Jozwiak wrote on X.

Bild journalist Julian Röpcke, with reference to a source, said that Ukraine has run out of missiles for the Patriot and Iris-T air defence systems. Röpcke said he had warned about this a few weeks ago.

“Ukraine has run out of Patriot and Iris-T missiles. Also, most other stocks of air defence means are depleted or destroyed,” he wrote.

Röpcke added that Western countries have hundreds of systems and thousands of missiles that Ukraine needs in their warehouses.

Röpke pointed out that Kyiv’s airspace is a free pass for missiles now

Earlier, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin criticised the Ukrainian strikes on the refineries, questioning their impact on the war while NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg believes that Ukraine has the right to strike “legitimate military targets” outside its borders. Austin urged Ukraine to focus on attacking military targets. According to him, those attacks could have a knock-on effect on the global energy situation. 

The human rights community in Ukraine is convinced of the need to suppress Russia’s military-economic machine in order to bring the Russian Federation back within the confines of international law.

Austin also called on Congress to approve supplemental military aid to Ukraine. He stressed that such assistance would also help increase defence production in the United States and that the funds would help the defence industry.

Stoltenberg passionately urged the US Congress to approve supplemental funding for Ukraine as soon as possible, stressing that military support from other allies already exceeds that of the US.

On March 22, 2024, Russians destroyed Ukraine’s largest dam, the Dnipro Hydroelectric Power Plant (HPP), in a mass missile attack. Ukrhydroenergo, Ukraine’s largest hydropower generating company, explained there were two direct hits to the Dnipro HPP in Zaporizhzhia, HPP-1 and HPP-2. It is not yet known whether it will be possible to restore the latter because it was seriously damaged.

Due to combined attacks of the Russian Armed Forces, the coalition of human rights organizations “Ukraine. 5 a.m.” appealed to partner countries to intensify their actions for providing air defense systems that should protect civilians and objects which are under the protection of the international humanitarian law.