The situation in Odesa Oblast is extremely difficult following Russia's overnight drone attack, President Volodymyr Zelensky said in his evening address on Dec. 10.
More than 1.5 million people in the area are without power, and only the most critical infrastructure is running on limited electricity, he said.
According to Ukraine's Air Force, Russia launched 15 Iranian-made kamikaze drones overnight on Dec. 10 at southern Ukraine, 10 of which Ukraine shot down. The attacks on Odesa Oblast significantly damaged local energy infrastructure, Ukraine's southern military command reported early on Dec. 10.
Ukrainian energy giant DTEK said that “several” energy facilities in Odesa Oblast were “destroyed simultaneously” and that it could take two to three months to repair the infrastructure.
Since Oct. 10, Russia has fired more than 1,000 missiles and drones at Ukrainian energy infrastructure, Volodymyr Kudrytsky, CEO of Ukraine's state grid operator Ukrenergo, recently said.
Kudrytsky added that almost all of the country's thermal power plants had suffered damage from Russian attacks. The Kremlin has repeatedly named Ukraine's energy infrastructure among its key military targets.
(Updated: )
