RUSSIA KNOCKS OUT MORE POWER PLANTS; UKRAINE TO RESTRICT ENERGY SUPPLIES

Energy officials in Ukraine stated on Wednesday that due to the loss of at least 40% of the nation's power generating capacity resulting from days of Russian attacks, they were forced to impose restrictions on electricity supplies throughout and plan nationwide blackouts.

Oleksandr Kharchenko, an adviser to Ukraine's energy minister, told CNN that "Unfortunately, according to new statistics, about 40% of the total infrastructure and our generating capacities are really seriously damaged."

In the statement that was aired on national television, Kharchenko added, "Restoration and repair work is ongoing, but miracles are possible only to a certain extent."

Therefore, in order to prevent overloading the grid, he continued, "we should expect both emergency and scheduled outages today and tomorrow."

The national energy company of Ukraine, NPC Ukrenergo, asked for the "understanding and support" of its energy consumers as they were required to impose consumption restrictions as a result of the missile attacks, according to CNN.

Thursday from 7:00 am to 22:00 pm, consumption limitations "may be applied throughout Ukraine," according to Ukrenergo.

According to the statement, "the outages will alternate; the duration of the outage is also determined by the regional power distribution company, but not more than 4 hours."

The enemy, unable to stand up to the Ukrainian Armed Forces on the battlefield, once more attacked the civilian energy infrastructure. We will thus impose restricted and thoughtfully calculated limits on users starting tomorrow, which we must do to ensure that the system functions in a balanced manner" the power company stated.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated in his nightly address that Ukraine had incurred new damage to its vital energy infrastructure.

According to CNN, Zelenskyy urged Ukrainians to be cautious with their use of electricity beginning on Thursday at 7:00 a.m. local time.

Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk, and Luhansk will now be under martial law, according to a bill that Russian President Vladimir Putin signed on Wednesday. Moscow claims to have annexed these four Ukrainian areas in defiance of international law.