Large parts of Kyiv were plunged into darkness in the early hours of Friday after Russian drones and missiles struck Ukrainian energy facilities, cutting power and water to homes and halting a key metro link across the Dnipro river.

In the latest mass attack targeting the energy system as winter approaches, electricity was interrupted in nine regions and over a million households and businesses were temporarily without power across the country.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia deliberately waited for bad weather before staging the attack.

"The main assault was in four regions," Zelensky told reporters in Kyiv.

"I believe that the weather conditions affected our capability to repel by something like 20 to 30 percent... The blow is strong, but it is definitely not fatal."

In southeastern Ukraine, a seven-year-old was killed when his home was hit and at least 20 people were injured.

In Kyiv, an apartment block in the city centre was damaged by a projectile, while on the left bank of the Dnipro that divides the capital, crowds waited at bus stops with the metro out of action and people filled water bottles at distribution points.

"We didn't sleep at all," said Liuba, a pensioner, as she collected water. "From 2.30am there was so much noise. By 3.30am we had no electricity, no gas, no water. Nothing."

According to Ukraine's energy ministry, over 800,000 customers temporarily lost power in Kyiv, with over 250,000 consumers still disconnected from the grid late on Friday.

Ukrainians are bracing for a tough winter, as the conflict nears its fourth anniversary. Russia has intensified attacks on the energy system in recent weeks, striking power plants and gas production facilities, and local authorities are struggling with the scale of repairs required. (Reuters)