Electricity will be in short supply: what awaits Ukrainians this summer
6 May 12:38
This summer, Ukrainians will be left without electricity again. To be more precise, blackout schedules will be reintroduced due to a shortage of electricity during the heat wave. The main reason is scheduled maintenance at nuclear power plants. Therefore, MP, member of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Energy, Housing and Utilities Sergiy Nagornyak advises Ukrainians to install solar panels and buy energy storage systems. Komersant found out whether they will help Ukrainians and whether ordinary citizens will be able to install solar panels.
MP Serhiy Nagornyak warns that blackouts may be introduced in the event of a severe heat wave, when the electricity shortage increases. “The main problem is that nuclear power plants will be undergoing scheduled maintenance. According to the MP, solar power plants will not be able to cover the deficit in the country, because “they generate more when we consume less,” i.e. during the day. Therefore, Nagornyak advises to encourage citizens to install solar panels and energy storage systems, which will reduce the load on the grid.
Million-plus cities will be left without electricity
“It is possible that this summer we will be left without electricity again, because some nuclear units are undergoing major repairs, we are saving gas and will not launch gas capacities. And consumption will increase in the summer, especially in late June and July, when electricity consumption peaks, says Oleh Popenko, head of the Union of Consumers of Public Utilities.
“We have a big problem. There is solar generation that could easily cover the deficit in the summer when nuclear power units are shut down for repairs, but it needs to be transferred from region to region, and we have not thought this point through. We have installed so many panels that our grids are not able to accept this amount of solar energy, and we are forced to let it go “into the ground”. We need billions of hryvnias to connect the system. No one thought about it, and we have what we have. In addition, the sun provides energy only from 10 to 17 hours. After that, there will be a serious shortage,” says Popenko.
In his opinion, during peak hours – from 17:00 to 23:00 – Kyiv and the region, Odesa and the region will experience the greatest lack of electricity, and a difficult situation may arise in Lviv and the region. In fact, there will be problems in cities with a population of over a million people.
Solar panels will not save you
However, it should be understood that not all Ukrainians can install solar panels, and not everyone needs to.
“You need a lot of money to install solar panels. Do Ukrainians have this money? On average, a 10 kW panel needs to be installed in a private house, and it will cost between $4,000 and $10,000. Those who had the money had them installed long ago. In apartments, it is impossible – there are, of course, exceptions when panels are attached to walls or balconies, but these are exceptions to the rule, they are not usually done this way, and it is useless. It is expensive and inefficient to install them on an apartment building because they will only be needed to operate the elevator and illuminate common areas. But there will be no effect, the solar panels will work for a maximum of six months, and the payback period in a high-rise building is 20-30 years, which is inefficient,” explains Oleg Popenko.
“Instead of solar generation, it would be much more appropriate to install energy storage and generators, as they will be more useful. And they are cheaper. According to him, all the stories about installing solar panels in an apartment building are a waste of the budget “for the efficient use of budget funds in projects.”
If people want to install solar panels for their own money, no problem. But there are no takers in apartment buildings. But they install drives and buy generators.
Now we need to be rational about purchases and buy what will be effective. If we had sunshine all year round, there would be no issues, emphasizes Oleg Popenko. And office buildings should have switched to autonomous energy generation projects a long time ago. For them, this is justified because they work from morning to evening and can provide themselves with electricity.
Recommendations for Ukrainians:
– check the operation of the generator, diagnose it, and make a fuel reserve;
– check whether the energy storage device is charged;
– charge power banks.
The only good thing is that it gets dark late in summer, so you can stay outside longer.
Author: Alla Dunina
