For decades, coal-fired power plants have been the backbone of Europe’s energy system, underpinning industrial growth, modern living standards, and what was long assumed to be a secure and resilient energy supply.
Today, Ukraine’s costly experience displays that to build resilience, European energy systems must embed local renewables — a shift that requires timely and strategic investment.
On Feb. 3, Russian missiles struck Ukraine’s Darnytsia thermal power plant, leaving Kyiv without electricity during one of the coldest winters in recent years. According to Ukraine’s Energy Minister, four years into Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine, “there is not a single power plant in Ukraine that has not been hit,” illustrating how Russia’s systematic attacks have turned centralized civilian energy infrastructure into a weapon of war.
Ukraine’s experience exposes a vulnerability that is not unique to Ukraine but is inherent to Europe’s highly centralized energy system architecture, too.
In an era of escalating geopolitical risk, Europe can no longer treat centralized energy infrastructure as a guarantee of security. Ukraine’s experience, acquired at immense human and economic cost, offers both a warning and a lesson. The question is whether the EU is prepared to learn that lesson and take early action by investing now in local renewable energy installations to support its larger systems.
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