Ukraine had to request 3,500 megawatt-hours of emergency electricity imports from Belarus and 800 megawatt-hours from Slovakia on Nov. 2 to make up for a deficit in domestic production, according to the national electricity grid operator Ukrenergo.
“The causes of the deficit are a heightened level of emergency shutdowns at power stations during a seasonal consumption increase,” Ukrenergo stated.
The state-owned grid operator pointed the finger at DTEK energy holding, which is owned by Ukraine’s richest oligarch Rinat Akhmetov and generates 30% of Ukraine’s electricity.
Three blocks at DTEK’s coal power plants suffered emergency shutdowns on Nov. 2, while another one failed to come back on the grid on schedule.
DTEK responded by publicly demanding a retraction of what they described as the “accusations” aimed at them in Ukrenergo’s statement.
“For the last three months, DTEK Energo’s plants are producing (power) above the (government’s) plan, compensating for the inaction of state-owned power plants,” the company said on Facebook.
On Oct. 22, Kyiv’s District Administrative Court ordered Ukrenergo to shut down its new cross-border electricity auction mechanism in a lawsuit brought by DTEK Zakhidenergo, a DTEK subsidiary.
In a previous statement to the Kyiv Post, DTEK said its lawsuit had nothing to do with limiting import auctions.
The current lack of domestic electricity generation is primarily a result of two factors: the old age and decrepit state of many of Ukraine’s power stations, and a severe coal shortage in the country over the last several months.
Due to the coal shortage, 24 blocks at thermal power plants with a combined capacity of 8.5 gigawatts have stopped generating electricity, Ukrenergo reported on Oct. 25.
Worsening the situation, Russia halted all thermal coal exports to Ukraine on Nov. 1, forcing six power plants to find new sources of coal.
