The expert advises to stock up on batteries
15 May 2024 17:44
ЕКСКЛЮЗИВ
Russian shelling of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure has led to a significant shortage of manoeuvring capacity. This means that it is advisable for Ukrainians to stock up on batteries, and as many as possible. Volodymyr Omelchenko, Director of Energy Programmes at the Razumkov Centre, told this in an exclusive commentary to [comersant ].
According to him, the destruction of about 8 gigawatts of power could not but affect the state of the energy system. That is why consumption restrictions have been in place for several weeks. However, the population has not felt them so far, as they have been applied mainly to the industrial sector. The blackouts for people began when the weather factor was added to the Russian shelling.
“Why did it happen that yesterday the population was also cut off? Because several negative factors coincided, primarily climatic ones. First of all, yesterday was a rather cool day, when consumption increases. On the other hand, it was a cloudy day, when electricity production by solar power plants decreases. And since we are walking on the edge of scheduled blackouts, yesterday was the expected event that had to happen sooner or later,”
– the expert believes.
Solar panels, in his opinion, solve household problems only partially. People need to think about a more systemic solution.
“In summer, a solar power plant helps, but in winter, its effectiveness decreases. As for batteries, yes, people can buy batteries, charge them at night, and use them during peak hours. Large batteries are also possible and appropriate, in my opinion, because we currently have a large deficit of manoeuvring capacity,”
– omelchenko recommended.
For this evening, Ukrenergo predicted emergency blackouts.
