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Power cuts hit Ukraine's capital Kyiv as Russia pummels energy grid
Russia-Ukraine War: More than one million Ukrainian households have lost electricity following recent Russian strike.
Kyiv's energy operator on Sunday said scheduled power cuts have been introduced in the Ukrainian capital as Russia has repeatedly targeted the nation's power network.
More than one million Ukrainian households have lost electricity following recent Russian strikes, according to the Ukrainian presidency, with at least a third of the country's power stations destroyed ahead of winter.
Moscow announced a new incursion on Sunday, saying it had destroyed a depot in central Ukraine that was storing over 100,000 tonnes of aviation fuel.
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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Saturday evening denounced "vile strikes on critical objects" by Russia after fresh attacks on energy facilities and power outages were reported nationwide including in western Ukraine -- far from the frontline.
National energy operator Ukrenergo introduced "stabilisation shutdowns" in Kyiv on Sunday to "avoid accidents", energy company DTEK said in a statement on its website.
The blackouts started from 11:13 am (0813 GMT) with consumers in Kyiv divided into three groups that will be "disconnected for a certain period of time", DTEK said.
It added that the blackouts should last "no more than four hours" but may be longer "due to the scale of damage to the power supply system".
DTEK reiterated calls for residents to use electricity "sparingly" and for businesses to limit their use of external lighting.
