Putin, who has poured billions of Russian taxpayer dollars into Crimea since Moscow seized control of it in 2014, attended the launch of a power station in the city of Sevastopol and oversaw the launch of another in Simferopol by video conference. The facilities -- able to cover 90 percent of Crimea's power needs -- were partially launched last year, but Monday's inauguration marked the moment they began working at full capacity. The same power stations were at the centre of an international scandal after German engineering company Siemens said its power turbines had been installed at them without its knowledge and in violation of European Union sanctions.