On the night of March 7, the Russian Federation launched a large-scale missile and drone attack on energy facilities in several regions of Ukraine. According to the company “Ukrenergo”, the shelling resulted in damage to infrastructure and power outages for consumers in the Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, Poltava, Vinnytsia, Odesa, Mykolaiv, and Khmelnytskyi regions. In areas where the security situation allows, emergency restoration work is already underway.
This is reported by Finway
Restrictions and Recommendations for Consumers
Following the latest attack, as well as previous strikes by Russia, mandatory power limitation schedules have been introduced in several regions of Ukraine for industry, along with hourly electricity outages for all categories of consumers. “Ukrenergo” urged citizens and businesses to shift the use of high-power electrical appliances to daytime hours from 11:00 AM to 3:00 PM, when solar power plants operate most efficiently. For regions where restrictions are in place, energy consumption is recommended to be shifted to periods of minimal load – after 10:00 PM.
Scale of Shelling and Threat to the Energy System
The Air Force reported that during the attack, the Russian army fired 480 drones and 29 missiles at Ukraine. Air defense managed to destroy 453 drones and 19 missiles. The main targets of the strike were Kyiv, Kharkiv, Zhytomyr, Khmelnytskyi, and Chernivtsi regions.
“As a result of the damage inflicted – as of this morning, there are consumers without power in the Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, Poltava, Vinnytsia, Odesa, Mykolaiv, and Khmelnytskyi regions. Wherever security conditions currently allow, emergency restoration work is already being carried out,” the report states.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, in his video address on March 1, emphasized that the country successfully passed this winter, which he called the most challenging of the entire war, thanking the military, energy workers, and all services for their efforts. At the same time, he stressed that Russia has no intention of stopping its attacks on energy infrastructure.
Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion in February 2022, the Russian Federation has systematically attacked Ukraine’s energy facilities. In the fall of 2025, the shelling of the Ukrainian energy system significantly intensified, leading to a substantial reduction in the country’s electricity generation capabilities.
According to UN estimates, as of January 2026, Ukraine has lost more than half of its pre-war electricity generation capacity, having only 11 GW of generation out of the necessary 18 GW for peak winter consumption. This has resulted in regular and prolonged power outages for the population and businesses.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine regards the strikes by Russia on energy infrastructure, which leave Ukrainians without heat during severe frosts, as acts of genocide. In response, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov claimed that Russia allegedly did not start attacks on civilian objects and accused Ukraine itself of launching the first strikes on Russia’s energy facilities.