Ukraine's largest power-generating plant destroyed in Russian missile strikes

Kyiv [Ukraine]: Ukraine's largest power-generating plant was destroyed followed by Russian airstrikes on Thursday, CNN reported.

This comes amid President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accusing the West of "turning a blind eye" to his country's need for more air defences.
Ukraine's Air Force stated that it knocked down 18 of the inbound missiles and 39 drones.

Russia launched 82 missiles and drones in total, including six hypersonic Kinzhal missiles, none of which Ukraine's air defences were able to intercept. There were no injuries, and the attack did not cause power outages in Ukraine's capital, Kyiv, or other locations served by Trypilska TPP, according to CNN.

According to Centrenergo, the Trypilska Thermal Power Plant (TPP), the major supplier of electricity to the Kyiv, Cherkasy, and Zhytomyr districts, has been destroyed.

"A black day in the history of Centrenergo," it said in a statement. "The scale of the destruction is terrible. Money can't estimate it. This is the biggest challenge for us in the history of the company," reported CNN.

Notably, Centrenergo is a major electric and thermal energy-producing company in central Ukraine and eastern Ukraine.

Several videos circulating on social media showed vast plumes of smoke billowing from the Trypilska plant as the fire continued to rage.

The attack on the Trypilska facility comes after a recent Russian attack that destroyed the company's unit in the Kharkiv region, Zmiivska TPP, on March 22, according to a Centrenergo statement. In July 2022, the Russian military took the company's third factory, the Vuhlehirska TPP in the Donetsk region.

According to the company's website, the three power stations had a total designed capacity of 7690 MW. DTEK, Ukraine's largest power company, also stated that Russia launched missile and drone attacks on two of its power installations on Thursday, causing "serious damage."

The business, which provides 20 per cent of Ukraine's energy, claimed it has experienced the most severe attacks in three weeks since Russia launched the full-scale invasion in 2022.

It stated that over 80 per cent of the power-generating facilities.