A major power grid emergency in Ukraine has spilled over into neighboring Moldova, causing widespread electricity outages and disrupting essential services in both
countries, officials said on Saturday.
Moldova’s Energy Ministry reported that instability in Ukraine’s electricity grid led to a sharp voltage drop on a key transmission line supplying Moldova. As a result, large parts of the country — including most districts of the capital, Chisinau — were left without power.
Chisinau Mayor Ion Ceban said the blackout affected residential areas and critical infrastructure, with traffic lights also going offline across the city, worsening transport conditions.
The impact of the grid failure was also felt inside Ukraine. Energy company DTEK confirmed that emergency power cuts were introduced in several regions to stabilize the system. In Kyiv, the metro temporarily suspended operations, while city officials said the power disruption caused a short-term halt to the capital’s water supply.
Ukrainian energy authorities have not yet issued an official comment on the cause or duration of the outage. Efforts are ongoing to restore stability to the grid and gradually resume electricity supply.
The incident highlights the fragile state of regional energy infrastructure as Ukraine continues to face ongoing pressure on its power system. Photo by Vasilii Rusu, Wikimedia commons.