Ukrainian strikes hit energy, oil infrastructure in Russian-occupied Crimea as power outages continue, military confirms

Ukraine launched a large-scale attack on Russian-occupied Crimea overnight on June 25, striking energy and oil infrastructure as well as military facilities across the peninsula, Robert "Madyar" Brovdi, commander of Ukraine's Unmanned Systems Forces, said.

The latest attack comes as the peninsula's energy grid has come under strain in recent days after Russian proxy authorities said widespread power outages in occupied Crimea on June 23 left approximately half of the peninsula without electricity.

Videos posted to social media purport to show a widespread power outage in the city of Simferopol following a reported drone strike. While photos purport to show parts of the city of Yalta without power following a reported attack on a substation in the area.

Explosions were also heard near the Balaklava Power Plant in Sevastopol, the Crimean Wind Telegram channel reported.

Ukrainian forces targeted 38 sites across occupied Crimea during a large-scale overnight attack. The targets included the Tavriya Thermal Power Plant in Simferopol, an oil depot in Dzhankoi, two gas compressor stations, two electrical substations, three coastal radar stations, and a ZU-23-2 anti-aircraft twin-barreled autocannon, according to Brovdi.

At least two people, including a child, were killed, and two others were injured as a result of Ukrainian attacks, Sergey Aksyonov, the Russian-appointed governor of occupied Crimea, claimed on June 25 on Telegram.

The Kyiv Independent cannot immediately verify the reports.

Mikhail Razvozhayev, the Russian-installed head of Sevastopol, said temporary electricity restrictions were introduced in the city due to strain on the power system. Yet scheduled power outages in Sevastopol are not in effect.

"I ask for your understanding regarding these temporary difficulties. As soon as we receive the order to lift the restrictions, power will be fully restored," Razvozhayev said.

Power disruptions also affected water supplies. Authorities in occupied Yevpatoria introduced hourly water restrictions after outages forced wells offline and reduced reserves at a local pumping station, Russian state-controlled media Kommersant reported on June 24.

Local officials said water deliveries would be organized for social facilities and residents until normal operations resume.

Recent strikes on the Crimean Peninsula also significantly affected local transport. Crimea-installed head Sergey Aksyonov said on June 25 that the Crimean Railway had reduced the number of trains to and from Crimea from 18 to seven per day.

Kyiv has routinely targeted Russian military infrastructure in occupied territories, as well as oil and industrial facilities that support Moscow's war effort.

The country has stepped up strikes on Crimea in recent weeks in an attempt to isolate the region from mainland Russia. In recent months, the peninsula has become the primary focus of Ukraine's effective "middle strike" campaign — using mid-range drones to hit Russian targets at operational depth behind the front, typically defined as between 25 and 200 kilometers (15 and 124 miles) from the front lines.

On June 24, Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) said that Kyiv's forces would "continue methodically turning Crimea into a zone of constant losses for Russian forces until they leave the Ukrainian peninsula."

Kyiv has set its sights on targeting the energy facilities amid an ongoing fuel shortages in the region caused by Ukrainian strikes.

Gas stations in occupied Crimea have also been instructed to fully suspend fuel sales to civilians from June 21 as Ukraine steps up drone strikes on energy infrastructure across the peninsula.

Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedoov said on June 17 that Ukraine's drone campaign is turning the peninsula "into an island," as Kyiv attempts to isolate Crimea from the rest of Russia with strikes on supply chains.