KYIV: Kyiv said Friday that southern regions of the war-scarred country were suffering the worst electricity outages days after the latest bout of systematic Russian attacks on the Ukrainian energy grid.
Russia fired dozens of cruise missiles at key infrastructure in Ukraine on Monday, piling pressure on the country's already ailing grid after repeated attacks.
The head of Ukraine's grid operator Ukrenergo, Volodymyr Kudrytskyi, said workers were struggling most to restore power in the Black Sea regions of Odessa, which was badly hit on Monday, and around the recently recaptured city of Kherson.
The most difficult situation was "in Odessa and Kherson -- the power grid was practically destroyed there," Kudrytskyi told reporters during a briefing.
Ukrainian officials said Russian troops left local power infrastructure in tatters when they retreated from the city of Kherson -- the only administrative capital they had claimed after months of fighting.
Ukraine warns of fresh Russian missile strikes
"Work in Kharkiv and Donetsk is also complicated," Kudrytskyi added, referring to regions bordering Russia where fighting is ongoing.
Kudrytskyi said the energy system nationwide had stabilised "quite quickly" after Monday's attacks and praised the country's air defences.
Kyiv said its forces intercepted about 60 of around 70 Russian missiles.
"The latest attack did not have such devastating consequences as some of the previous ones," Kudrytskyi said, adding that Russia had launched more than 1,000 missiles and drones at energy facilities since October 10.
"There is no thermal power plant in Ukraine that was not damaged by these attacks," he said.
"Virtually all hydroelectric plants have also been damaged and have limited power generation capacity."
On Thursday, Russian President Vladimir Putin vowed to keep battering Ukraine's energy grid despite an outcry against the systematic attacks that have plunged millions into cold and darkness.
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