Technical Malfunction Causes Widespread Power Outages Across Ukraine and Moldova

Emergency Blackouts Hit Ukraine and Moldova

On Saturday, January 31, 2026, a significant technical malfunction in key power lines led to widespread emergency power cuts across several Ukrainian cities and neighboring Moldova. The outages, which began around 10:42 AM local time (0842 GMT), affected major Ukrainian urban centers including Kyiv, Zhytomyr, and Kharkiv regions, and extended into Moldova, impacting its capital, Chisinau, and other cities.

Cascading Failure in Power Grid

Ukrainian Energy Minister Denys Shmyhal confirmed that the incident stemmed from a 'technical malfunction' or 'technological disruption' involving critical power infrastructure. Specifically, a simultaneous shutdown occurred on the 400 kV line between Romania and Moldova and the 750 kV line connecting western and central Ukraine. This failure triggered a 'cascading outage' within Ukraine's power grid, activating automatic protection systems at substations and leading to the unloading of nuclear power plant units.

The immediate consequences were severe. In Ukraine, the capital Kyiv experienced cuts to its water supply, and the city's metro system, along with Kharkiv's, was temporarily suspended due to a loss of voltage in the network. Emergency power outages were also reported in the Odesa and Dnipropetrovsk regions, and the Chernihiv region was completely de-energized.

In Moldova, the impact was equally significant. Large parts of Chisinau and other major cities lost electricity, causing trolleybuses to halt, traffic lights to become non-functional, and disrupting some border operations. Problems with cellular communication were also reported. Moldova's Energy Ministry stated that the voltage drop on the 400 kV Isaccea–Vulcanesti–MGRES high-voltage line, which carries electricity imports from Romania, forced an emergency disconnection of Moldova's entire power system due to its shared electricity generation bloc with Ukraine.

Rapid Response and Restoration Efforts Underway

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy tasked officials with stabilizing the energy sector following the disruption. Ukrainian Energy Minister Denys Shmyhal indicated that energy specialists from Ukrenergo were actively working to restore power, with initial forecasts suggesting restoration within two to three hours for affected regions. Moldova's Energy Minister Dorin Junghietu (also referred to as Dorin Recean) urged the population to remain calm, confirming that power supplies would be restored within hours, with operator Moldelectrica working to stabilize the grid. By 1200 GMT, power had been restored to most critical infrastructure in Kyiv.

The Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine clarified that the emergency situation was not caused by a cyberattack but was purely a result of technical issues on the interconnection lines. This incident occurred amidst severe winter weather and against the backdrop of Ukraine's energy grid already being under strain from ongoing Russian strikes, though officials explicitly attributed this specific event to a technical malfunction.