Power station damaged in Russian attack in southern Ukraine - ministry

Russian shelling damaged a combined heat and power station in southern Ukraine overnight, the Ukrainian energy ministry said. Ukraine's national grid operator, Ukrenergo, had earlier on Thursday described the plant as a thermal power station but an energy ministry statement said all thermal power plants in territory controlled by Ukraine were in operation.

Russian shelling damaged a combined heat and power station in southern Ukraine overnight, the Ukrainian energy ministry said.

Ukraine's national grid operator, Ukrenergo, had earlier on Thursday described the plant as a thermal power station but an energy ministry statement said all thermal power plants in territory controlled by Ukraine were in operation. "Unfortunately, last night a combined heat and power station in one of the towns in the south of the country was damaged by shelling," the ministry said.

It said the station had not been in operation at the time of the attack and a warehouse had caught fire. The blaze was subsequently extinguished, it added. Ukrainian cities are often equipped with small combined heating and power stations, which not only heat homes but also generate electricity.

In an emailed comment to Reuters, Ukrenergo said it was not able to provide further details under current legislation during wartime. Russia unleashed waves of air attacks on Ukrainian power plants and transformers last winter that left millions of people without electricity at times.

It struck energy facilities across Ukraine last week, disrupting power supply in five region, and attacked unspecified infrastructure early on Thursday. Ukraine has carried out extensive repairs of its power infrastructure but officials have warned of new attacks this winter and called on allies to bolster Kyiv's air defences.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy discussed the possibly of NATO members supplying additional air defence systems during talks with the military alliance's secretary general, Jens Stoltenberg, in Kyiv on Thursday.