International

Ukraine is committed to cogeneration and private production to face the winter

Less than two years after a first campaign of Russian attacks on the electricity system deprived millions of Ukrainians of constant energy supply for months, Ukraine has become accustomed to blackouts again this summer and is working in a hurry to avoid a second winter in the dark by boosting cogeneration and encouraging private production.

In addition to repairing the damaged infrastructures as soon as possible, and trusting that the new air defenses received will serve to protect them from possible additional attacks, the Ukrainian authorities are installing hundreds of cogeneration plants throughout the country to decentralize production and involve gas companies in the task.

“They are parallel processes,” Yuri Boiko, advisor to the Prime Minister of Ukraine, Denís Shmigal, and member of the Supervisory Board of the national electricity company, Ukrenergo, tells EFE.

Boiko points out that, if it receives a sufficient boost, cogeneration will mitigate the effects of the electricity deficit on the population: “The more cogeneration is installed, the less charge the central energy system will have.”

The prime minister’s adviser warns, however, that the impact on the situation will depend on the number of cogeneration units that will be enabled in the coming months.

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Part of these already functioning mini-power plants have been donated by Ukraine’s foreign partners.

The United States cooperation agency has delivered 91 cogeneration plants that will be installed in 32 cities throughout Ukraine and will provide a production capacity of 56.5 megawatts that will allow part of its critical infrastructures to operate.

The first 18 were installed at the beginning of this month and already generate electricity and thermal energy for Ukraine.

Unlike thermal power plants, which in Ukraine have been massively bombed by Russia to destroy 80% of the generation capacity by this method that the country had, cogeneration plants take advantage of the heat that is released when it comes to producing electricity and supply it to other infrastructures.

The cogeneration units that Ukraine is installing are of a relatively small size and can be moved relatively easily.

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This allows them to be mounted next to buildings that can provide heating with the thermal energy they produce when generating electricity.

While conventional power plants are very difficult to defend from bombing, due to their large dimensions and the impossibility of changing their place, cogeneration units can be distributed throughout the territory, reducing the risk of concentrated blows to the generation capacity.

“In Ukraine, a few power plants and a dozen substations are still responsible for half of the electricity generation and transmission. Obviously, five or ten centrals are easy targets for the enemy. When we have hundreds of small power plants, it will be almost impossible to attack them with missiles,” said the head of the Parliament’s Energy Committee, Andrí Gerus, in a recent interview.

As revealed by President Volodymyr Zelensky during the conference for the reconstruction of Ukraine held in June in Berlin, where the Ukrainian electricity sector obtained numerous commitments of Western public and private aid, Kiev aspires to install 1 gigawatt of electricity production capacity by cogeneration this year.

In its eight massive attacks this year against Ukrainian power plants, Russia has destroyed about 9 gigawatts of the generation capacity that Ukraine had.

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The Ukrainian gas and oil company Ukrainafta announced this month an ambitious project valued at one billion dollars to install, within three years, more than gigawatts of electricity production capacity through cogeneration from natural gas.

The company also develops wind and solar energy projects to contribute to the recovery of part of the electricity sector.

Another vector to produce more energy and relieve the burden on the power plants and substations that are being repaired is the promotion of own generation between companies, institutions and individuals.

On June 20, Zelenski ordered the authorities to install solar panels, accumulators and smart meters in all schools and hospitals.

The Ukrainian Parliament approved new tax exemptions for the purchase and imports of generators, batteries and solar panels with the idea of promoting the installation of their own generation capacities among citizens and reducing their dependence on a centralized system that remains in the crosshairs of Russian commanders.

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The Ministry of Energy of Ukraine announced earlier this month the arrival in the country of about six thousand solar panels manufactured by the Italian company Enel and paid for by the European Commission that will serve to guarantee the uninterrupted supply of electricity to hospitals in five regions of the country.

International

Security Council to Hold Emergency Meeting on Middle East Crisis

UN Secretary-General António Guterres on Saturday condemned the “military escalation in the Middle East” following attacks by the United States and Israel against Iran and Tehran’s retaliatory strikes, just hours before an urgent meeting of the UN Security Council.

“I call for the immediate cessation of hostilities and de-escalation,” Guterres said in a statement.

The Security Council is scheduled to meet on Saturday at 21:00 GMT (4:00 p.m. in New York) to address “the situation in the Middle East,” the United Nations announced.

The meeting, during which Guterres will deliver remarks, was convened at the request of France, Bahrain, Colombia, Russia and China, according to a diplomatic source.

International

Trump Floats “Friendly Takeover” of Cuba Amid Rising Tensions

U.S. President Donald Trump said Friday that his administration is considering what he described as a “friendly takeover” of Cuba, as Washington continues to increase pressure on the island’s communist government.

“The Cuban government is talking to us and they have very serious problems, as you know. They have no money, they have nothing at this moment, but they are talking to us and maybe we will see a friendly takeover of Cuba,” Trump told reporters as he departed the White House for a trip to Texas.

Earlier in the week, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Cuba needed a “radical change,” shortly after Washington eased restrictions on oil exports to the island for what officials described as “humanitarian reasons,” amid a deep economic crisis.

The United States has imposed an energy blockade on Cuba since January, citing what it calls an “extraordinary threat” posed by the communist-run island, located roughly 150 kilometers (90 miles) off the coast of Florida, to U.S. national security.

International

Argentina’s Senate Reviews Milei-Backed Labor Overhaul

Argentina’s Senate on Friday began reviewing the Labor Modernization Law promoted by the administration of President Javier Milei, a proposal that would significantly reshape labor rules across the country.

The upper chamber opened its final discussion of the contentious initiative, which revises the method used to calculate severance payments — lowering the amounts owed in dismissal cases — and introduces an “hour bank” mechanism that allows overtime to be offset with paid leave rather than extra wages.

The legislation also broadens the classification of essential services, a change that would place new limits on the right to strike in designated sectors.

The bill was initially approved by the Senate on February 11 and then moved to the Chamber of Deputies, where lawmakers passed it with amendments. It has now returned to the Senate for definitive approval.

Outside the Congress building in Buenos Aires, workers, trade unions and left-wing organizations staged demonstrations beginning at midday. The gathering later thinned out amid reports of disturbances and a strong police presence. Security forces had secured the area surrounding the legislature since early morning hours.

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Union leaders contend that the reform weakens labor protections, while many business representatives back the measure but stress that sustainable formal employment will require economic expansion, improved credit conditions, greater investment and a more dynamic domestic market.