Ukraine needs to import electricity, since domestic generation, amid a significant drop in temperature in February, cannot provide consumers with a resource at the required level due to insufficient coal reserves in the warehouses at thermal power plants, which make up 44% of the minimum guaranteed reserves and 21% of last year, Head of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Energy, Housing and Utilities Services Andriy Gerus said.

"In such conditions, we cannot depend on the fact that some companies did not deliver coal to their warehouses, and today 80% of coal-fired power plants belong to private companies. Therefore, electricity imports have begun in Ukraine, which accounts for 3-4% of our consumption," Gerus said in a video message posted on his Telegram channel and Facebook page on Tuesday.

At the same time, he said that imports are carried out by several traders during peak consumption hours, in particular, in the evening hours, and contribute to balancing the energy system.

"The situation will be balanced with the help of imports, and there are no serious risks of rolling blackouts," Gerus said, adding that imports in such volumes do not threaten the country's energy security.

At the same time, he expressed the hope that with the March warming, there will be no need for imports in the Integrated Power System.

In a post on Facebook preceding the video message, he said that, in general, there are reasons to restrict the import of electricity from the Russian Federation, but there is no reason to restrict its supply from Belarus.

"From Belarus, we cannot even theoretically import more than 3-6% of our consumption, since power lines are limited to 900 MW. And the Ukrenergo dispatcher itself limits such imports when there is a surplus in the energy system," he said.

At the same time, the head of the committee also expressed his conviction that a complete ban on imports leads to a monopolization of the market and an increase in prices.

According to the ENTSO-E website, 9,695 MWh of electricity is expected from Belarus during February 2, which is 80 MWh more than expected on February 1 (some 9,615 MWh). Supply volumes - from 315 MWh to 500 MWh, the largest 500 MWh are expected from 13:00 to 16:00, as well as from 19:00 to 23:00 (during the period 21:00-22:00 - some 480 MWh) Kyiv time.

Electricity supplies from the Russian Federation are planned at the same level and according to the schedule as on February 1: within three hours, from 12:00 to 15:00 Kyiv time, it is planned to deliver 200 MWh hourly, from 20:00 to 21:00 - some 200 MWh, from 21:00 to 23:00 - some 100 MWh.