Ukraine desperate for Australian coal to avoid Russia-caused blackouts

London: Ukraine has upped its appeal for an urgent humanitarian shipment of Australian thermal coal and warns that the war-torn nation could otherwise face major blackouts as Russian forces target its energy infrastructure.

Ukraine’s energy minister, German Galushchenko, issued a further plea to the Australian government to match a similar shipment of almost 80,000 tonnes in August 2022 – which cost taxpayers about $30 million – and said it would be critical to ensuring the country’s power supply could be stabilised when its fleet of nuclear plants undergoes maintenance during spring in the northern hemisphere.

Ukrainian Energy Minister German Galushchenko speaks at a conference last year.Credit: AP

For a second consecutive winter, Russia has increased military attacks on Ukraine’s energy system, using thousands of missile strikes and drone attacks to significantly undermine the security of the country’s power supply. The bombing campaign – which lasted throughout last winter and has resumed in recent months – has targeted energy infrastructure such as power plants, coal mines, oil refineries and district heating facilities.

Galushchenko told this masthead that Ukraine was fighting a second front when it came to shoring up electricity supplies for hospitals, critical infrastructure and residential areas, and the grid had so far held up despite Moscow’s military campaign to destroy power stations, with thanks to air defence systems from Western allies.

“The Russians did not manage to reach the energy system so far this winter – they attacked us by missiles almost every two days – but they have not had critical influence or impact to the system,” Galushchenko said.

“But what we see of course, by spring and summer, we would need additional coal from abroad because of the huge destruction of the coal mines and the effects of these attacks. Any help received would be very welcome. The last shipment was very important for us and we were deeply thankful. It allowed us to keep up our defences.”

‘We are fighting for the democratic world. So if we cannot protect these values, we probably need to rethink what we are doing.’

German Galushchenko, Ukrainian Energy Minister

Ukraine’s ambassador to Australia, Vasyl Myroshnychenko, wrote to the Albanese government to plead for a second instalment of energy support on December 5, but is yet to receive an answer six weeks on.

The federal government has come under increased criticism from defence analysts and the opposition to give additional military aid to Ukraine. It has so far rejected requests to donate retired RAAF F/A-18 fighter jets, 45 Taipan MRH-90 helicopters and Hawkei combat vehicles towards Ukraine’s defence from Russia’s invasion.

Asked on Sky News Australia whether Australia would send a shipment, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said: “We give appropriate consideration to all requests, we do that in a way that is diplomatic and gives proper consideration to it.“

“We have been very clear, with measures of economic support, with the training just last week, a range of Australian soldiers headed to the United Kingdom to do further training of the Ukrainians in order to assist the war effort they’re engaged in,” he said.

Russia has targeted Ukrainian energy infrastructure. Kakhovka dam, in southern Ukraine, was destroyed last year.Credit: Planet Labs PBC/AP

“We will continue to engage in a mature, considered way with Ukraine. And we stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes.”

Galushchenko said that from April, the country’s nuclear power plants – which now produce more than 55 per cent of its electricity – would need urgent repair works and this energy supply would need to be replaced by coal-fired plants.

Most of Ukraine’s large coal mines are in the east of the country, near the Russian border and the separatist regions of Donetsk and Luhansk, where the bulk of the fighting over almost two years of conflict has been.

Some areas have had access to electricity, heating and the internet for only a few hours a day, while hospitals, businesses and households have had to turn to expensive diesel generators. The World Bank recently estimated that Ukraine’s energy sector has sustained US$12 billion ($18 billion) in damage during the war.

Galushchenko said Ukraine had invested heavily in preparing for this difficult winter, spending substantially on repair, reconstruction and defence. But he said Russian troops and drone strikes had even targeted maintenance crews who had been dispatched to replace damaged transformers, transmission lines and interconnectors after areas were plunged into darkness for days on end.

He said at times about 30 per cent of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure had been attacked in a single day as Russia used missiles and drones to target energy facilities and left no thermal or hydropower plant untouched.

Before the war, the Ukrainian government had planned to reduce the country’s reliance on coal-fired power stations and to increase nuclear energy and natural gas production.

Ukraine depends on imports for about 83 per cent of its crude oil consumption, 33 per cent of its natural gas and 50 per cent of its coal, according to the most recent data from the International Energy Agency.

So far, it has sourced additional supplies from several coal-rich countries such as the United States, Colombia, Australia and Kazakhstan, along with other suppliers.

Galushchenko said despite good planning, Ukraine’s energy resilience was still “a day-to-day issue” and could drastically change if Vladimir Putin’s attacks became more sophisticated and targeted or there was a long-lasting cold snap.

He said he understood countries such as Australia and others in the West were “maybe growing a bit tired”, but he said support for Ukraine’s cause had never been more important.

“We are fighting for the democratic world. So if we cannot protect these values, we probably need to rethink what we are doing,” he said.

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