(Bloomberg) -- Poland’s authorities warned of a potential influx of refugees from neighboring Ukraine after Russian forces stepped up attacks on the nation’s energy sector and other critical infrastructure.
The Kremlin intensified strikes against Ukraine’s power system this year, triggering power cuts for households and industrial producers. Electricity rationing has been in force since March and on some days is only available for several hours.
“We have very clear signals that due to Russian aggression, there may be a large inflow in the fall and winter,” Dariusz Marczynski, director of the Interior Ministry’s department for protection of civilians and emergency management, told lawmakers in Warsaw on Wednesday.
Since the outbreak of the war, more than 18 million Ukrainians crossed into Poland, according to border guard service. Just under 1 million decided to stay in the European Union member-state, with many finding jobs or establishing their own companies.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy is seeking investment to build as much as 1 gigawatt of decentralized generating capacity in the coming months. In a move to step up with support for Kyiv, Poland and Moldova said earlier in July that they are looking for ways to help Ukraine boost its electricity security.
Poland, which has abundant coal, is discussing a plan that would allow its generators to burn fuel at home and send it to Ukraine using existing connections. Moldova is working on a plan to generate electricity in its territory using Ukrainian gas, though the project is technically complex and likely can’t begin until winter.
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