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Ukraine experienced widespread electricity outages on Saturday following a “technical malfunction” that disrupted key power lines connecting Moldova, Romania, and Ukraine, the country’s energy minister said.
By around 2:00 pm (1200 GMT), authorities had restored electricity to most critical areas in Kyiv, but households in some regions were still without power, the minister hinted.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy described the incident as an “emergency.”
The capital’s metro system was forced to suspend operations completely, the first time this has happened since Russia’s invasion began in 2022, leaving thousands of passengers stranded. Service, however, resumed several hours later.
Electricity was also restored to residential areas in Odesa and Kharkiv, the energy ministry reported.
Earlier, Energy Minister Denys Shmygal said on Telegram that a “technical malfunction” had caused “a simultaneous shutdown of the 400-kilowatt line between the power grids of Romania and Moldova and the 750-kilowatt line between western and central Ukraine.”
Most of Chisinau, the Moldovan capital, lost power temporarily, though service was largely restored by 3:40 pm, the Moldovan energy ministry said.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said on X (formerly Twitter) that there was no direct impact on nuclear safety expected, but the overall situation remains precarious.
The outages add strain to Ukraine’s already fragile energy grid, which has been targeted in weeks of intense Russian bombardment.
Kyiv has said that this winter has been especially difficult, with attacks cutting electricity and heating to millions in sub-zero temperatures.
Russia had announced on Friday that it would refrain from attacks on Kyiv until Sunday, following an appeal from US President Donald Trump.
Ukraine’s metro system serves around 800,000 passengers daily and doubles as a bomb shelter during air raids. Moldova produces its own electricity but relies on imports from Romania and Ukraine to meet demand.
