Ukraine gives an upbeat update on its power grid, but concern is growing over the upcoming holidays.

Ukrainian officials are optimistic that power cuts will not be necessary during the holidays New Year's Eve as crews work to repair the country's electricity grid, which has been damaged by Russian strikes.

Although the grid remains fragile and Many Ukrainians still lack reliable electricity, with authorities noting improvements in recent days. In one of his late-night speeches earlier this week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that "the number and duration of blackouts continue to decrease gradually" across the country.

The country's Prime Minister, Denys Shmyhal, said this week that in the absence of additional Russian bombardments, there would be no need for emergency power cuts over the New Year. this weekend, according to a statement posted on the Telegram messaging app. Other holidays are also approaching: many Orthodox Christians begin Christmas celebrations on January 6.

Mr. Shmyhal also said teams repaired some of the country's critical infrastructure on Tuesday, including two thermal power plants.

Repairs have become one of Ukraine's top priorities in recent months as repeated waves of Russian strikes on the country's power grid have left tens of millions of Ukrainians without reliable electricity and heating in the winter cold. Many residents experienced unpredictable blackouts and long periods without running water. But even as utility crews rush to make repairs, new attacks are jeopardizing — or undoing — some of their work.

Last week in Kyiv, there was only enough energy for 20% of the population. And two weeks ago, all Ukrainian thermal and hydropower plants were damaged by Russian strikes, according to Shmyhal.

Herman Halushchenko, Minister of Energy of the country, took on a more ominous tone this week, warning that Russia could use New Year's Eve as an opportunity to strike power systems again, according to local media.

Mr. Halushchenko said that while the country's energy deficit was shrinking overall and crews were working around the clock to keep the system running, it was prudent to make predictions about what might happen in the coming weeks. p>

Ukrenergo, Ukraine's national energy company, said on Wednesday that restrictions on electricity consumption were still in place in all regions to deal with electricity shortages. electricity, although for the fourth day in a row none should be applied at night because temperatures were relatively high, according to a statement on Telegram.

The statement also indicated that the country's electricity deficit had increased over the past day due to the bombardment of gas infrastructure in the eastern region of Ukraine, but added that no other restricti energy system would not be put in place.

Bridget Brink, the US ambassador to Ukraine, said in a statement on Wednesday that the U . The Southern Embassy in Kyiv was "proud to carry out the Secretary of State's mission to work day and night with Ukrainian partners to help keep the energy grid operational through the winter."

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