Ukraine’s experience shows how quickly the threat landscape is escalating. Since September 2025, Russia has carried out more than 200 attacks on thermal power plants, while cyberattacks have risen by 30–40% and AI is fueling an arms race of ever‑more sophisticated offensive tools. The EU is facing its own surge in hybrid threats – from subsea cable sabotage and drone incursions to cyberattacks that have disrupted thousands of energy assets – revealing a risk environment that is broader and increasingly unpredictable.
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“We live in a new reality of increasing threats. This requires a fundamental shift in mindset. Preparing for, responding to and recovering from both physical and hybrid attacks must be a key element of power companies’ strategies going forward.”
Drawing on lessons learned from Ukraine and recent events in the EU, and assessing European utilities’ preparedness for threats to physical assets, our report shows how:
- Energy infrastructure is a deliberate target that needs to be protected
From the subsea sabotage of Nord Stream to a cyberattack that disabled 5,800 German wind turbines, drone incursions near Norwegian offshore platforms and repeated airspace violations, Europe’s critical energy assets are being targeted even in peacetime.
- Utilities are adapting to the evolving threat landscape but remain unevenly prepared
Information sharing remains fragmented, with utilities often receiving only partial or delayed intelligence from national authorities. Crisis coordination is uneven, as joint exercises with the military are still rare. Supply‑chain resilience is still fragile too, with multi‑year lead times for key components and no coordinated European stockpiles.
- Utilities and policymakers can take direct steps to improve preparedness, by
- Improving situational awareness and crisis readiness, including cooperation with authorities and regular exercises.
- Protecting critical assets by reinforcing infrastructure, stockpiling equipment, strengthening repair capabilities, and embedding cyber resilience by design.
- Implementing key legislation, such as the Critical Entities Resilience (CER) Directive, the NIS2 (cyber) Directive and the Electricity Market Design.
- Supporting investment frameworks that reward resilience, including the NATO 1.5% target for critical infrastructure with a priority for electrification.
“This report turns hard lessons from Ukraine into practical action for the rest of Europe. It shows what utilities can do today – from improving crisis coordination and training, to hardening assets, securing communications and stockpiling critical equipment – to better prepare for, respond to and recover from attacks.”
