In January, Russia experienced a significant increase in utility outages, with reported cuts in power, heating, and water supply across the nation more than doubling compared to the previous year, as reported by the exiled media outlet Novaya Gazeta Europe on Monday.
The publication documented 1,788 instances of disruptions in January, a rise from 983 cases during the same period last year. Power outages were the most common problem, with 723 reports, followed by heating failures at 552 and water supply interruptions at 513.
When compared to January 2025, the analysis indicated that confirmed outages during the cold weather had doubled for both electricity and heating, while water supply issues increased by approximately 50%.
The Belgorod region recorded the highest number of outages, totaling 143 incidents during the winter months, largely due to frequent cross-border shelling. Other regions facing numerous incidents included Krasnodar (138), Murmansk (105), Dagestan (76), Kaluga (76), and Ryazan (74).
Irek Faizullin, the Minister for Construction, Housing, and Utilities, previously mentioned that the deterioration of utility infrastructures varies from 40% to 80% across different regions. Only about 2% of this infrastructure is renewed each year, a figure that needs to be doubled to prevent further decay, according to lawmaker Alexander Yakubovsky.
Despite the aging utility systems and frequent failures, the government has outlined a three-year budget that gradually decreases funding for housing and utilities. This year, the budget for the sector is set at 1.999 trillion rubles ($26.0 billion), which is projected to drop to 1.399 trillion rubles ($18.2 billion) next year and to 1.413 trillion rubles ($18.4 billion) by 2028.
In Krasnodar, heavy snowfall during the New Year period left over 84,000 residents in the town of Belorechensk without electricity, with reports that one resident experienced a week-long blackout.
The Murmansk region faced power outages in its capital and nearby Severomorsk on January 23 after five electricity pylons fell, four of which were over 40 years old. Power was interrupted again on January 31 due to emergency repair work.
Frequent outages were also reported in Belgorod, where Ukrainian forces targeted two thermal power stations and the Storozhevaya substation on January 9, affecting around 556,000 people.
Regions like Dagestan faced severe water supply issues, especially in the city of Kaspiysk, where residents of several apartment buildings went without water from January 2 to January 19. Many residents of other large towns expressed similar grievances on social media.
Heating outages were prevalent in January in the Zabaikalsky region, where residents of Atamanovka spent the New Year without heat due to a pipeline failure that impacted approximately 3,000 people for nearly a week. Another significant heating main broke on January 21 in Darasun.
The Volgograd region also experienced recurring heating failures, with residents reporting that a gas pipeline accident led indoor temperatures to drop to around 11 degrees Celsius, causing ice to form on windows.
For the full story in Russian, please refer to The Moscow Times’ Russian service.
