Konotop Enters Fifth Day Without Power as Government Promises Diesel Supplies

Ukraine's Prime Minister Serhii Koretskyi has directed the Ministry of Energy and the national grid operator Ukrenergo to bring electricity back to Konotop, a city in Sumy Oblast that has now spent five consecutive days without power. In the interim, the city is set to receive a stock of fuel for alternative power sources.

Koretskyi said the outage followed a Russian attack on an energy infrastructure facility. "After the Russian attack on the energy infrastructure facility, the city has been without power for five days," he said. According to him, critical infrastructure is running on backup power, and so-called invincibility centres have been set up for residents.

These centres are heated premises stocked with food and power banks, intended to help people coping with the hardships of power cuts.

The prime minister instructed the Energy Ministry, working together with Ukrenergo, to "urgently investigate the situation and restore electricity supply in the city as quickly as possible."

He also announced that the government would supply Konotop with the diesel it needs. "The government also will provide Konotop with the necessary stock of diesel fuel for alternative power sources today," Koretskyi said, adding that the fuel is required for the operation of boiler houses and water utilities.

Konotop Mayor Artem Semenikhin said the damage is extensive. In his account, Russian forces hit several energy facilities, which has significantly complicated efforts to resume the electricity supply and has limited the options for backup power for consumers. He said repair work on the energy infrastructure is continuing.

The outage dates back to Russian strikes carried out overnight between 23 and 24 October. On 27 October, it was reported that Konotop had been without electricity for four consecutive days, with no forecast for when power would return.