As temperatures plummet below freezing amid the ongoing war with Russia, Ukraine faces the prospect of a bitter winter, mass displacement and longer power blackouts.

Ukraine's electricity demand increases by 20-25% over winter, which lasts from mid-October to mid-April. But repeated Russian attacks on power plants and transmission infrastructure means that Ukraine will struggle to meet this demand.

The country already faces power outages of around 8-12 hours a day and according to a UN study on Ukraine's energy infrastructure, this could rise to 18 hours this winter season.

The European Union has vowed to help Ukraine restore a quarter, or about 4-5 GW, of its total winterneeds. It has also promised an additional €160 million ($173.7 million) on top of at least €2 billion already allocated for Ukraine's energy security.

The bulk of that sum — €96 million — will come from profits earned on frozen Russian assets, a European Commission spokesperson told DW in a statement.

Russia has destroyed all of Ukraine's thermal plants and 40% of its hydropower capacity since it invaded Ukrainein February 2022, according to local Ukrainian media. It also has control of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant— the largest in Europe.

The massive scale of destruction of Ukraine's energy infrastructure has disrupted all aspects of daily life, including the provision of medical care in hospitals, the supply of water in high rise buildings, heating in homes and online education for students whose school buildings have been bombed.

The energy crisis, and its impact on essential........

© Deutsche Welle