New rules of distributing energy limits to be introduced on June 8 - Ukraine's Energy Ministry

MOSCOW. June 7 (Interfax) - The new rules for schedules of rolling blackouts, which will be introduced in Ukraine on June 8, are aimed at ensuring that they last shorter, Ukrainian First Deputy Energy Minister Yury Vlasenko said.

"The new rules for schedules of hourly blackouts, which are to be introduced in test mode on Saturday, will bring the limits for how much 'rest' is needed in a certain region.

Given this, a distribution system operator must ensure sequences of blackouts the way to use only this limit. According to our calculations, there should be fewer sequences and the lights in people's homes will stay on for longer hours," Ukrainian media quoted Vlasenko as saying in Ukraine's parliament on Friday.

The government, the Energy Ministry and the Office of the President are constantly monitoring the schedules of hourly rollouts and power limitations, he said.

On May 24, the Ukrainian government approved the rules of defining and applying power consumption limits. The rules define the order of interaction between the Energy Ministry, the industry watchdog, the transmission system operator, distribution system operators, and consumers in defining and applying power consumption limits.

The Energy Ministry, which drafted the rules, said that in line with the rules regional and Kiev city military administrations prepare and approve the lists of critical facilities that require priority power supplies in line with the minimum set load.

"The adopted decision will help ensure fair and equal distribution of electric power within the limits among consumers outside the list of critical facilities that require priority power supplies," the ministry said.

Ukraine introduced rolling blackouts both for industrial companies and households in all regions on May 14. Before that, starting from May 8, power limits were introduced for industrial enterprises.

On June 6, general director of the Yasno energy supplier Sergei Kovalenko said that as fr Kiev, critical facilities account for 25% of power consumption, while household and businesses have about 50% of their usual consumption.

He said he hoped the situation would improve as the new power distribution rules are introduced on June 24.