Ukraine threatens to cut off power to rebel-held regions if usage not curbed

Pro-Russian separatists sit in a vehicle in front of a block of flats damaged during fighting between pro-Russian rebels and Ukrainian government forces near Donetsk Sergey Prokofiev International Airport, eastern Ukraine, December 16, 2014. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

KIEV (Reuters) - Ukraine may stop supplying electricity to separatist-held eastern regions if the territories do not adhere to consumption limits imposed across the country due to an energy crisis, an energy ministry official said on Monday.

Ukraine used to be self-sufficient in electricity, but months of fighting the pro-Russian uprising has disrupted coal supplies to thermal power plants, which traditionally generate around 40 percent of the country's power.