FALSE: Ukraine, Despite Having a Deficit in the Power Grid, Sells Electricity Abroad

In various social networks, including Threads, information is being spread claiming that Ukraine, despite all the statements about stopping electricity exports, power outages, and attacks on the energy system, is still selling electricity abroad.

This is false. Ukraine does not export electricity. The figures being presented as sales are the result of system balancing through technical flows.

To track the export and import of electricity between Ukraine and neighboring countries, we use information from the European Network of Transmission System Operators for Electricity (ENTSO-E). Ukraine has been part of ENTSO-E since the beginning of the full-scale invasion. On the “Scheduled Commercial Exchanges” tab, which shows commercial supplies, i.e., the buying and selling of electricity, it is clear that Ukraine is only purchasing it.

At the same time, the “Cross-Border Physical Flow” tab is shown as evidence of Ukraine’s exports, where the result of system balancing is displayed. When energy systems are interconnected, “technical flows” exist. This natural phenomenon is dictated by the laws of physics. Typically, these flows are insignificant. However, the hourly balance is almost always zero: we immediately return as much as goes abroad. This is necessary for the stability of the power system and to stabilize the electricity situation in case of problems.

Ukraine also resorts to this due to significant damage to its energy infrastructure from Russian attacks. Flows allow us to balance our own power system. Even under these conditions, Ukraine “keeps” part of the electricity during flows. For example, on June 6, 2024, within ENTSO-E, we received 24.9 thousand MW and gave back only 4.3 thousand MW. Or on June 9, Ukraine received 33.1 thousand MW and returned only about 11 thousand MW.

Additionally, on the Fraunhofer Institute’s Energy-Charts resource for commercial and physical flows, we see that after the deficit appeared, Ukraine stopped exporting electricity.