MOSCOW, May 4. /TASS/. Ukraine can face a significant shortage of electricity this summer because of untimely putting nuclear power units for repair, head of the Ukrainian Center for Energy Research Alexander Kharchenko said on Thursday. He added that the shortage can be most felt during the peak of consumption in July and August.

"During the highwater period, when Ukrhydroenergo could supply Ukrainians with electricity through the generation of electricity at hydroelectric power plants, the nuclear units were not taken out for repairs. Judging by the fact that they are not being repaired even now, repair work will begin only in the summer. This means that there will practically nothing to cover the summer peak [of electricity consumption], which always happens in July and August. So, we will have a significant shortage of electricity, namely [shortage of] power generation," he said at a briefing.

Kharchenko added that it is proposed to cover the possible shortage of electricity through imports, but in this case, electricity prices will increase. The expert noted that import supplies may not be enough, and in this case it is proposed to launch power units running on natural gas. However, this may have a negative impact on the future heating season, since sufficient gas reserves will not be formed in storage facilities, Kharchenko stressed.

On April 27, the head of the national energy company Ukrenergo, Vladimir Kudrytsky, said that Ukraine could face a shortage of electricity in the summer, and therefore it would have to abandon its export.