FP, Sevastopol :
Recent electricity outages which plunged Crimea into darkness have spotlighted the peninsula’s enduring heavy dependence on Ukraine more than five months after it was annexed by Moscow.
Lights went off for several hours in most cities around Crimea overnight last Sunday, including the major cities of Yalta and Sevastopol, the home of the Russian Black Sea Fleet.
It was a dark reminder for Moscow that while it easily unilaterally incorporated Crimea into Russia in an institutional sense in March, it has a massive task to absorb the isolated peninsula economically.
Even when it was under Kiev’s control Crimea was difficult to supply, with infrastructure connected via the tiny slivers of land that run between the region and the Ukrainian mainland.
Now for Russia that challenge is multiplied as it has only tenuous air or sea links to the peninsula.
Crimea also remains highly dependent on Ukraine for water, food and transportation.
Kremlin-loyal officials on the peninsula were quick to hit out at Kiev when the lights went out.
Crimea’s acting governor Sergei Aksyonov called Sunday’s power outage an “act of sabotage by the Ukrainian authorities” aimed at disrupting the start of the school year.
But ironically it may be Russia’s policy towards Ukraine that is rebounding on Crimea.
Ukraine’s economy is flagging as Moscow has cut it off from Russian trade, and massive spending has been needed for the military campaign against pro-Russia rebels controlling much of the southeast.
Ukrainian power company Ukrinterenergo, which supplies 80 percent of the electricity consumed by Crimea, said it has had to introduce restrictions owing to a fuel shortage crisis at its power stations.
“If Crimea’s consumers don’t respect these limits the company will be required to cut off completely its supplies to the peninsula,” the company said on Wednesday. Later it shut off power for three hours.
“We are very vulnerable in the energy sphere,” acknowledged the speaker of the Crimean parliament, Vladimir Konstantinov.
Crimea produces only 16 percent of the electricity it needs, according to energy consultancy IHS Cera.
Moscow has sent several generators to Crimea to help in cases of outages and announced plans to build power stations to help the peninsula achieve energy independence.
Recent electricity outages which plunged Crimea into darkness have spotlighted the peninsula’s enduring heavy dependence on Ukraine more than five months after it was annexed by Moscow.
Lights went off for several hours in most cities around Crimea overnight last Sunday, including the major cities of Yalta and Sevastopol, the home of the Russian Black Sea Fleet.
It was a dark reminder for Moscow that while it easily unilaterally incorporated Crimea into Russia in an institutional sense in March, it has a massive task to absorb the isolated peninsula economically.
Even when it was under Kiev’s control Crimea was difficult to supply, with infrastructure connected via the tiny slivers of land that run between the region and the Ukrainian mainland.
Now for Russia that challenge is multiplied as it has only tenuous air or sea links to the peninsula.
Crimea also remains highly dependent on Ukraine for water, food and transportation.
Kremlin-loyal officials on the peninsula were quick to hit out at Kiev when the lights went out.
Crimea’s acting governor Sergei Aksyonov called Sunday’s power outage an “act of sabotage by the Ukrainian authorities” aimed at disrupting the start of the school year.
But ironically it may be Russia’s policy towards Ukraine that is rebounding on Crimea.
Ukraine’s economy is flagging as Moscow has cut it off from Russian trade, and massive spending has been needed for the military campaign against pro-Russia rebels controlling much of the southeast.
Ukrainian power company Ukrinterenergo, which supplies 80 percent of the electricity consumed by Crimea, said it has had to introduce restrictions owing to a fuel shortage crisis at its power stations.
“If Crimea’s consumers don’t respect these limits the company will be required to cut off completely its supplies to the peninsula,” the company said on Wednesday. Later it shut off power for three hours.
“We are very vulnerable in the energy sphere,” acknowledged the speaker of the Crimean parliament, Vladimir Konstantinov.
Crimea produces only 16 percent of the electricity it needs, according to energy consultancy IHS Cera.
Moscow has sent several generators to Crimea to help in cases of outages and announced plans to build power stations to help the peninsula achieve energy independence.
