Russia carried out a large-scale overnight strike on Ukraine’s power system on 7 February, hitting high-voltage substations and key transmission lines that officials described as central to the national grid. The attack was followed by emergency electricity restrictions across the country and a request for cross-border assistance from Poland.

In a message published on Telegram, Denys Shmyhal, who is serving as First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Energy, said the strikes targeted substations and overhead transmission lines rated at 750 kV and 330 kV. These high-voltage corridors form the backbone of Ukraine’s electricity network, moving large volumes of power between generation centres and regional distribution nodes. Damage to such assets typically has wider system effects than attacks limited to local distribution infrastructure, because faults on trunk lines can force operators to shed load rapidly to prevent cascading failures.

Shmyhal also reported strikes on two thermal power plants in western Ukraine: the Burshtyn and Dobrotvir facilities. Both sites have been repeatedly cited by Ukrainian officials and energy companies as being under pressure from Russia’s campaign against generation and grid assets. Ukraine’s grid operator Ukrenergo said emergency measures were introduced after the attack, and officials stated that the system was operating under restrictions.

According to Shmyhal’s statement, staff at nuclear power stations reduced output from reactor units during the incident. Ukrainian authorities have previously used controlled “unloading” of generation to stabilise frequency and manage sudden losses of transmission capacity. Shmyhal said that, as of the morning of 7 February, emergency outage schedules were in force nationwide, with “4.5–5 queues” of emergency disconnections applied across Ukraine and separate emergency schedules in eastern and northern regions.

Ukraine also activated a request for emergency electricity assistance from Poland. Shmyhal said Ukrenergo’s dispatcher had initiated the procedure, a step typically used when domestic balancing resources are insufficient or when transmission constraints prevent normal internal re-dispatch. Such support can take the form of short-term power imports to relieve system stress and reduce the extent of domestic disconnections.

Reports of the strike indicated that several western regions came under attack, including Khmelnytskyi, Rivne, Ternopil, Ivano-Frankivsk and Lviv oblasts. In practical terms, the west is significant to Ukraine’s power system because it contains major interconnections and generation assets and acts as a corridor for some electricity flows. Attacks in these areas can therefore affect both local supply and national balancing, particularly during winter peaks.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy described the assault as a “massive attack” on energy facilities and said it involved more than 400 drones and around 40 missiles. Reuters reported that the strikes hit both generation sites and distribution substations, adding to the cumulative damage sustained by the sector since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion. The same report said the attack occurred amid freezing conditions, with temperatures expected to fall sharply in parts of the country.

Ukraine’s largest private power producer, DTEK, reported significant damage and described the incident as another in a series of attacks on its facilities since autumn 2025. The repeated targeting of power plants and grid nodes has forced Ukrainian operators to rely on emergency measures, repairs under fire, and a mixture of domestic balancing actions and imports when available. The immediate operational priority after such strikes is usually to isolate damaged sections, restore transmission capability where possible, and reconfigure flows to reduce the risk of further outages.

Poland took precautionary steps because of the proximity of the strikes. The Guardian reported that two airports in south-eastern Poland temporarily suspended operations, with flights later resuming. Such measures have been used in past incidents when air activity related to the conflict increases near the border, including military aviation movements and heightened air-defence alert states.

The scale and focus of the 7 February strike underline the emphasis on high-voltage infrastructure—substations and 750 kV and 330 kV lines—alongside attacks on thermal generation. For Ukraine’s power system, the loss of these assets can produce immediate supply gaps and, more critically, limit the ability to move electricity from areas with available generation to areas with higher demand.