Russia today attacked three thermoelectric plants of Ukraine’s largest private energy company, DTEK, causing infrastructure damage, it said.

“The equipment was severely damaged. After the attack ended, engineers immediately began repairing the damage,” DTEK said in a Telegram post.

A little earlier the managing company of the electricity distribution network of Ukraine, Ukrenergo, had announced that the country’s energy infrastructure became the target of Russian attacks with missiles and drones, as a result of which thermoelectric and hydroelectric power plants were hit.

Widespread Russian attacks in recent days, the latest of which took place today, have caused extensive damage to Ukraine’s electricity generation and transmission infrastructure, forcing Kiev to suspend exports and rely on electricity imports.

“During the night the Russians again hit energy infrastructure in a massive and coordinated attack,” Ukrenergo said on Telegram.

“Thermal and hydroelectric plants in the central and western provinces were damaged,” he added.

Ukrenergo pointed out that there have been emergency power outages in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, in the southeast.

This “massive attack” with “drones and missiles” targeted power plants in Dnipropetrovsk, Poltava and Cherkasy provinces, Ukrainian Energy Minister German Galuchenko said.

Injuries

The governor of Dnipropetrovsk, Serhii Lysak, for his part, pointed out that “this night the anti-aircraft defense shot down ten drones over the province – in the regions of Pavlograd, Krivi Rykh, Dnipro, Kamiansky. Four missiles were destroyed over Dnipro.”

“Many energy facilities were damaged (…) A man was injured inside one of them,” Lisak added.

In Kamianski a farming cooperative was hit and five people were injured – a 5-year-old child and two women aged 19 and 47, who did not require hospital treatment, and two men aged 36 and 47 who are in serious condition.

As announced by the Air Force of Ukraine, the anti-aircraft defense destroyed 84 of the 99 Russian missiles and drones launched during the night.

“On the night of March 29, 2024, the enemy launched a powerful air-missile attack against the energy and fuel sectors of Ukraine using various types of missiles and attack drones,” the statement said. “84 aerial targets were destroyed: 58 Shahed drones and 26 missiles,” he added.

Poland’s reaction

Meanwhile, Poland’s armed forces said two fighter jets had taken off to monitor the country’s airspace after Russia fired missiles at western Ukraine.

“Intensified long-range air activity on the part of the Russian Federation, associated with missile strikes against targets on Ukrainian territory, was observed this evening,” the Polish military command said in a statement.

“We have taken all necessary actions to protect Polish airspace” and Polish forces are “constantly monitoring the situation,” the statement added.

Warsaw had announced on Sunday that a Russian cruise missile fired towards western Ukraine entered Polish airspace for 39 seconds.