Ukraine’s largest hydropower dam in critical condition after Russian attacks, officials say

(CNN) — Ukraine’s largest hydroelectric dam, the Dnipro Hydroelectric Power Station (HPP), is in a “critical condition” following a Russian attack on Ukrainian energy facilities, officials say.

Ivan Fedorov, head of the military administration of the Zaporizhia region, told Ukrainian television that the power plant could no longer produce electricity.

Traffic is “totally blocked” around the plant, he said, and residents are forced to cross a bridge to get around.

Russia is continuing its strategy of attacking key energy facilities this week, with Ukraine’s Energy Ministry warning on Sunday of “significant energy shortages” as a result of the attacks.

The ministry said an emergency blackout was imposed across several regions of Ukraine following “six major attacks”.

Ukraine’s Energy Ministry said power facilities in the regions of Zaporizhia, Dnipropetrovsk, Donetsk, Kirovograd and Ivano-Frankivsk were hit in what the ministry called “the sixth missile and drone attack on power facilities since March 22”.

Russia’s Defence Ministry said the attacks were carried out “in response to the Kiev regime’s attempts to damage Russian energy and transport facilities”.

Ukraine is in a defensive position on the front line as it faces frequent air strikes. In May, taking advantage of Ukraine’s shortage of weapons and manpower, Russia opened a new front with a surprise attack northeast of Kharkiv.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, attending a summit of defence chiefs in Singapore, called on Asia-Pacific countries to join an upcoming peace summit, which he accused Russia of trying to sabotage.

He thanked US President Joe Biden for “an important decision” to allow Ukraine to use American weapons for limited strikes inside Russian territory, but said it was not enough.

Last year, the Nova Kakhovka dam, a major dam and hydropower station in Russian-occupied southern Ukraine, collapsed.

The cause of the collapse is still unconfirmed, although several civil engineering experts have suggested that an explosion within the structure was the most likely cause of the dam’s failure.

Many Western officials blamed Russia for the disaster at the time, either directly accusing Moscow of attacking the dam or saying Russia was responsible simply because it is the aggressor in the war against Ukraine.

Russia denied any involvement in the disaster and in turn accused Ukraine of destroying the dam without providing evidence.

Ivana Kottasova and Gianluca Mezzofiore contributed to this report.