CNN: US faces serious problems in supporting Ukraine’s energy system
The U.S. and other Western countries are facing some problems in allocating aid for Ukraine’s power grid, including a shortage of equipment in global supply chains and the incompatibility of some equipment with the Ukrainian power grid, CNN reported, citing a U.S. official.
The official said that more than a week ago Ukraine received a shipment of electrical equipment from the US as part of a multimillion-dollar programme to support the country’s power grid promised by US President Joe Biden’s administration.
“However, while the US and its partners are trying to provide the capital (Ukraine) Kiev with everything it needs to provide power and heat this winter, it has to reckon with problems in global supply chains,” the piece said.
He added that the U.S. is working with the non-government sector to reduce equipment shortages, but problems in the supply chain still cause a number of difficulties.
Another problem, which the official noted, is that some expensive components of the power supply system used in the US operate on a different frequency grid from the Ukrainian one, so they are incompatible with the power system in Ukraine.
The official added that in the short term the US plans to supply Ukraine with the large gas generators it is asking for.
He also stressed that even when power grids in Ukraine are restored, they will not be able to be operated at full capacity immediately, as this would create a high probability of their failure, so the Ukrainian authorities are likely to continue the practice of rolling blackouts until they are convinced that the power grids can withstand the load.
The Russian Armed Forces started striking Ukrainian infrastructure on 10 October, two days after the terrorist attack on the Crimean bridge, which, according to the Russian authorities, was backed by Ukrainian special services. The strikes targeted energy, defence, military and communications facilities across the country. Following the strikes on 15 November, Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmygal said that almost half of the country’s energy system was out of order. In December, Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that it was now impossible to fully restore the Ukrainian energy system.
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