Head of Ukraine's power transmission network sacked, broadcaster says
Adds details of board vote, paragraphs 2, 5-6, parliamentarian, paragraph 7, background, paragraphs 8-10
Sept 2 (Reuters) -The head of Ukrenergo, Ukraine's power transmission network, was dismissed on Monday, public broadcaster Suspilne quoted sources as saying, on grounds of failing to protect energy facilities.
Suspilne said Volodymyr Kudrytskyi was dismissed by a vote of 4-2 by thecompany's Supervisory Board. It said he would be replaced by Oleksiy Brekht.
There was no immediate comment from Ukrenergo, Ukraine's Energy Ministry or senior Ukrainian officials.
The decision comes after a meeting last week of President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and top military officers that was devoted to a wave of Russian attacks on energy targets. Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko was in attendance.
Ukrainian media outlets, in advance of the board meeting, published a letter from Western organisations active in Ukraine, including the European Union, expressing "deep concern" to Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal about reports of Kudrytskyi's imminent dismissal.
"Such an event could jeopardise our collective ability to support Ukrenergo and other priority measures of Ukraine's vital energy security," the letter read.
Yaroslav Zhelezniak, an opposition member of parliament writing on the Telegram messaging app, predicted that international reaction would be "quick and quite painful".
Ukrainian media suggested the main reason behind the dismissal was the company's inability to provide suitable defences for energy sites and irregularities in awarding contracts.
The Ekonomychna Pravda newspaper quoted unnamed government sources as saying that Kudrytskyi, head of the company since 2020, had failed to implement decisions taken at previous meetings of the military command.
Russia has devoted considerable resources in two and a half years of war to attacking and disabling key Ukrainian energy targets. Moscow's forces launched a new wave of attacks over the past week.
Reporting by Ron Popeski; Editing by Deepa Babington and Andrea Ricci
Latest News
Disclaimer: The XM Group entities provide execution-only service and access to our Online Trading Facility, permitting a person to view and/or use the content available on or via the website, is not intended to change or expand on this, nor does it change or expand on this. Such access and use are always subject to: (i) Terms and Conditions; (ii) Risk Warnings; and (iii) Full Disclaimer. Such content is therefore provided as no more than general information. Particularly, please be aware that the contents of our Online Trading Facility are neither a solicitation, nor an offer to enter any transactions on the financial markets. Trading on any financial market involves a significant level of risk to your capital.
All material published on our Online Trading Facility is intended for educational/informational purposes only, and does not contain – nor should it be considered as containing – financial, investment tax or trading advice and recommendations; or a record of our trading prices; or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instruments; or unsolicited financial promotions to you.
Any third-party content, as well as content prepared by XM, such as: opinions, news, research, analyses, prices and other information or links to third-party sites contained on this website are provided on an “as-is” basis, as general market commentary, and do not constitute investment advice. To the extent that any content is construed as investment research, you must note and accept that the content was not intended to and has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such, it would be considered as marketing communication under the relevant laws and regulations. Please ensure that you have read and understood our Notification on Non-Independent Investment. Research and Risk Warning concerning the foregoing information, which can be accessed here.