Russian Strikes Cut Output at Ukrainian Nuclear Plants and Trigger Rolling Power Cuts

Overview

• Ukraine's Energy Ministry says nuclear power plants are operating below nominal output after large-scale strikes damaged the transmission network that links reactors to the grid.
• Operators have imposed scheduled hourly outages across most regions and declared emergency blackouts in Kyiv, the Kyiv region and Kharkiv to protect the weakened system.
• Repair crews and distribution operators are conducting emergency fixes while authorities have launched urgent procurement for transformers, generators and spare parts.
• Officials warn that a gradual return to full nuclear generation will follow only as damaged substations and lines are repaired and promised public updates from local distribution platforms.
• The campaign of targeted hits on high-voltage substations and transformers has worsened winter vulnerability and could disrupt heat, water and metro services until the grid is stabilized.