The Tax Service included 4,558 business inspections in its 2026 plan, slightly fewer than last year, with peak activity in March-April. The inspections will primarily concern companies (78%), as well as individual entrepreneurs, with Kyiv, Dnipropetrovsk, and Lviv regions leading in the number of visits.
On the night of January 1, a number of Russian regions, including Krasnodar Krai and Kaluga Oblast, were subjected to drone attacks, which caused fires at an oil refinery and an oil depot. The mayor of Moscow reported repelling two UAVs that were allegedly flying towards the capital.
Enemy UAVs attacked critical infrastructure facilities in Volyn, causing fires in Lutsk and Kovel districts. Over 100,000 subscribers are without power, and there is no information about casualties.
As a result of an enemy drone attack on the night of January 1, the energy infrastructure of the Odesa region was damaged, causing a fire at one of the facilities. Power outages are being recorded at critical enterprises in Odesa.
On December 31, 120 combat engagements were recorded at the front, Russian troops launched 46 air strikes and used 4,659 drones. The most tense situation remains in the Pokrovsk direction, where the enemy tried to break through the defense 27 times.
All regions of Ukraine will face hourly power outages and power restrictions for industry on January 1. This is a consequence of Russian attacks on energy infrastructure, and the situation may change.
As reported by the General Staff, on the night of December 31, the Tuapse oil refinery, Tamanneftegaz, the Rosrezerv oil depot, and a number of other targets of the Russian occupiers were hit.
The Nomination Committee approved four independent members of the new supervisory board of NNEGC "Energoatom", including experts in nuclear safety, finance, and energy regulation. The selection of three state representatives to the supervisory board will be completed in January.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy has dismissed Ruslan Mahomedov from the post of head of the National Securities and Stock Market Commission. He had headed the commission since February 2021, according to a presidential decree.
Political scientist Stanislav Zhelikhovsky highlighted the key events of the year: Trump's return, resumption of negotiations, creation of the "Coalition of the Willing", allocation of 90 billion euros to Ukraine, and the PURL mechanism. The expert also mentioned the elections in Poland and Zelenskyy's visit.
The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has decided to extend restrictions on the export of timber and scrap metal until the end of 2026. This decision provides for a licensing regime with zero quotas to preserve strategic raw materials in Ukraine and direct them to the needs of domestic processing.
In 2025, Ukraine's energy system was supplemented with 423 MW of new balancing capacity thanks to Ukrenergo's special auctions. The largest share is accounted for by energy storage facilities (398 MW) and gas piston units (25 MW).
On December 31, SBU drones attacked the Temp oil depot in Rybinsk, which is part of the Rosrezerv system. A large-scale fire broke out at the facility, disrupting the supply of petroleum products in the northeastern region of the Russian Federation.
The US Coast Guard has suspended its pursuit of the tanker Bella 1, suspected of violating sanctions against Venezuela. The ship's crew painted a Russian flag on board, complicating the seizure operation.
Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine has cost Russian taxpayers approximately $550 billion, which is equivalent to 24 annual Russian higher education budgets. A significant portion of these expenditures is hidden, and the financing of the war is shifted to the population through new taxes and rising prices.
In 2025, Russians used over 60,000 guided aerial bombs, about 2,400 missiles, and over 100,000 drones. Air raid alerts sounded at least 19,033 times across Ukraine.
Oil prices were little changed on Wednesday but are expected to fall by more than 15% over 2025. This is due to fears of oversupply, despite wars, tariffs, and sanctions.
The European Union plans to impose a 20th package of sanctions against Russia on the fourth anniversary of the invasion of Ukraine. Measures will include travel restrictions, asset freezes, and sanctions in the energy and banking sectors.
This refers to UAVs, sights, thermal imagers, anti-drone rifles, and other critically important goods for Ukraine.
In the Kyiv region, a family was poisoned by carbon monoxide due to a faulty gas water heater and lack of ventilation. A 45-year-old couple and their 4-year-old daughter were affected; the mother and child have been hospitalized.
A 5,000-year-old Late Neolithic fortress, built around 3000 BC, was discovered in southern Spain. Inside the structure, the body of a Roman soldier was found, buried 2,500 years after its foundation.
The Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense and the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine attacked a sea oil terminal and an oil refinery in the city of Tuapse, Krasnodar Krai, Russia.
Russia again attacked energy facilities in several regions of Ukraine, causing blackouts in five regions, including over 170,000 consumers in Odesa region and thousands in Brovary district of Kyiv region. Bad weather also left part of the residents of Khmelnytskyi and Ternopil regions without electricity.
Units of the Unmanned Systems Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine inflicted damage on a number of military and infrastructure facilities in the temporarily occupied territories of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia regions and in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea. Among the hit targets are an oil depot, a floating craft base, a radar station, deployment points and substations.
During the night, Russia attacked two DTEK energy facilities during an enemy strike on the Odesa region, causing significant damage that will require time to restore. In December, 10 substations were damaged, and since the beginning of the year, 25 energy facilities in the region have been attacked.
In Vyshhorod, Kyiv region, electricity supply has been fully restored after almost 100 hours of absence. Energy workers restored light for 356,500 families in 46 settlements of Kyiv region.
During the night, the enemy again attacked Bila Tserkva, injuring a man born in 1964 and causing an acute stress reaction in a woman born in 1977. Two multi-story residential buildings were damaged, with broken windows and mangled balconies.
In Odesa, six people, including three children, were injured as a result of the night attack by the Russian Federation. Part of the city lost electricity, water, and heat supply, and damage to infrastructure and residential buildings was recorded.
Discounts on Russian oil at export terminals again approached historical highs, reducing margins and leading to losses. More than half of Russian oil companies are eligible for zero or reduced mineral extraction tax rates.
On the night of December 31, explosions occurred in Russia's Krasnodar Krai, likely due to a drone attack. In Tuapse, the AVT-12 unit at the oil refinery, a key primary oil refining unit, is on fire.
