Unpaid utility bills trigger power outage at Kyiv oblast facilities
AES-Kyivoblenergo ,the electricity utility that supplies Kyiv region with power, is cutting power supplies to a number of the oblast’s army installations in an attempt to force the government to pay an electric bill that tops Hr 3 million.
Kyivoblenergo was acquired by a United States company, AES, when it was privatized in 2001.
Olena Kompanets, a spokesperson for the electricity distributor, said the company began to interrupt the military facilities’ power supplies in the region on Aug. 27. The power outages span several hours at a time.
Kompanets also said that the defense ministry owes more than Hr 3.4 million for electricity.
Power has been fully restored to the facilities that have paid at least 60 percent of their debts, but it continues to be disrupted at the remaining sites, she added.
“We gave them two weeks to solve the problem and devise a plan, to pay the debt, restructure or settle through a debt-swap,” Kompanets said. “If we can’t settle the debt in some way, then we’ll keep shutting off electricity.”
This is not the first time a power company has used outages to force customers to pay up. Utilities have used the strategy since independence, cutting power to factories, municipal transportation services and even hospitals. The debtors are often state-owned or state-subsidized facilities.
Although military sites have experienced outages in the past, this is the first time that a U.S.-owned utility has cut the power to a Ukrainian military post over debts.
Defense Ministry spokesperson Konstantin Khivrenko downplayed the effect the power outages have on the military’s effectiveness. He said the military uses diesel fuel from its reserves to power generators and is, as a result, ready for any circumstances that may arise. He declined to say whether facilities with spotty power service have enough diesel fuel to burn through the end of the year.
“It is obviously a serious situation, but I can assure you that the main defense sites are ready for combat, even without electricity,” he said.
Khivrenko said that all military sites are operational, and residential sites have power for the soldiers and their families. Hundreds of soldiers are stationed or living at the sites where AES has cut power.
Khivrenko said that military sites in other oblasts have dealt with similar problems in previous years.
He said that the defense ministry’s debts to AES-Kyivoblenergo are several years old, and the ministry is paying current electricity bills in full, and on time. The problem is that the military lacks the funds to pay delinquent debts.
Khivrenko said the military has not historically received sufficient operating funds from the government.
“The debts will be paid when the government has enough money to set aside for these and other expenses,” he said.
