Russia is purposefully destroying Ukrainian energy infrastructure. There is almost no coal or gas-fired power plant left that has not been hit by Russian missiles, says a report by ARD.
A colossus with a length of several hundred meters - this is how the thermal power plant looks like, visited by a team of the German public-legal media ARD. However, its location remains a secret - the enemy should not receive any information important for the war - even though after the Russian attacks this plant no longer produces electricity.
The walls are destroyed, the roof has collapsed, the window panes are broken - says ARD correspondent Mark Duge. Scattered on the floor are shrapnel from Russian missiles that hit the plant. One of the workers is still amazed: “What can I say? I just don't understand why they do this. They are our neighbors, they have everything they need for a good life. I don't understand why they are shelling us.
Not a single power plant was left unscathed
The logic of Russian attacks on Ukrainian power plants is clear: they aim to demoralize people, weaken industry, and thus the country as a whole. There is not a single coal-fired or gas-fired power plant left in Ukraine that has not been affected, writes ARD. Some are partially destroyed, others completely.
The plant visited by the German journalist is of the second type. It smells like burnt metal everywhere. On an old generator, you can still see the pentacle with the inscription USSR - it is from Soviet times. Workers clear the debris. Maxim is one of them: “We are currently helping to remove the damage. We won't stop until the plant is up and running again. Because if there is no electricity, everyone will suffer.
Hopes for the delivery of parts from Western Europe
Maxim is from the Donetsk region, where he also worked at the TPP until it was demolished. “It is natural to be afraid. You go to work and you don't know if you will return home," he told ARD. At his last workplace, he came under artillery fire as soon as he entered through the portal. The workers just had to react quickly and hide in the shelters. They were afraid, but they had chosen this job themselves, says Maxim. “No one forced us."
He hopes that the necessary spare parts will soon be delivered from Western Europe. But it will likely take months, perhaps years, to rebuild the plant. And under the condition that it is not attacked again. In April alone, Russia attacked four of the thermal power plants of the company DTEK, 80 percent of its energy infrastructure was destroyed.
„At some point there will be a crash"
The longer the attacks continue, the more difficult it becomes to supply electricity to Ukraine. One of the workers makes a comparison with the Internet: “Imagine you have a router with 100 people connected to it. In theory, they should all count on a speed of 100 megabits. And when there are a hundred, things work. But if it's 200 or 1000, the speed slows down." The same applies to energy, the man explains: “When the current is less and the consumers are more, at some point there will be a breakdown.
The air raid sirens are then turned on again. This happens several times a day. Everyone should go to the shelters. Thermal power plants in Ukraine these days are a dangerous place, summarizes ARD.