Sabotage of transformer station near Cologne: police launch terrorism investigation
Deliberate disruptions to electrical infrastructure have occurred at the Bergheim transformer station near Cologne. Police are simultaneously investigating a terrorist incident at the Jänschwalder coal-fired power plant in Brandenburg.
German police: disruptions to electrical network near Cologne were not accidental
Žurnal24 reports that on Tuesday evening, serious disruptions occurred at the Bergheim transformer station near Cologne, which police believe were likely the result of an intentional act. Police were called at 8 p.m. due to an alleged technical fault, and following a short circuit, multiple electrical lines went down. General electricity supply was not interrupted.
The transformer station is operated by energy company Amprion, which confirmed the incident. Amprion experts are working with security authorities to determine the cause and assess the consequences. According to police, they are working closely with both Amprion and network operator RWE. The area around the station was closed to the public following the incident.
"Based on the current state of the investigation, we believe this was not a technical fault, but an intentional act," a police spokesperson said, according to German news agency dpa.
Herbert Reul, interior minister of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, announced at a press conference in Düsseldorf that there is "suspicion of sabotage directed against the constitutional order". Investigators are examining two possibilities, according to him: sabotage remotely directed by a foreign state, or an act by a left-wing extremist.
Parallel incident: explosion at power plant in Brandenburg
On the same day, unknown individuals attempted to cause a short circuit on high-voltage lines near a coal-fired power plant in Jänschwalder in the state of Brandenburg in the morning. Explosive devices were found at the transformer station, some of which detonated. Multiple electrical lines were damaged, and electricity supply was interrupted for a short period.
The police authority of the state of Brandenburg in Potsdam announced today that it has launched a terrorism investigation in connection with this incident. "In addition to suspicion of disruption of public services, triggering of explosions using explosives, and destruction of critical operating equipment, an investigation has also been launched due to the establishment of a terrorist organisation," police said, according to French news agency AFP.
Series of attacks on electrical infrastructure in recent months
The two incidents are not isolated. In recent months, several attacks on electrical infrastructure have occurred in Germany. In January, alleged left-wing extremists damaged high-voltage electrical lines near a power plant in southwestern Berlin, as a result of which tens of thousands of households and businesses were without electricity for several days.
Investigations into all the mentioned incidents are still ongoing, and the causes and perpetrators have not yet been definitively established.
Source: Žurnal24