Connexion
Russian-occupied nuclear plant ran on diesel for almost three weeks. Ukraine ended that, and the UN’s nuclear watchdog calls it a crucial step against an accident
Ukrainian power engineers restored the Ferosplavna-1 line and put the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) back on external electricity after almost three weeks, Ukraine's state nuclear operator Energoatom reported. The repairs took three days and were carried out during a local ceasefire brokered by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the UN's nuclear watchdog.
The line is back, and the plant is drawing 11 MW
The plant's own needs were energized from the 330-kV Ferosplavna-1 overhead line on 7 September, Energoatom said. Consumption stood at 11 MW.
The work of Ukrainian power engineers and the agreed local ceasefire made the restoration possible, the company said. Ukrainian specialists reconnected the plant to Ukraine's unified power system under constant security risks and what the company called the unpredictable actions of Russian forces, according to Energoatom. It was the seventh local truce IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi has negotiated in this war, the IAEA said.
The plant can now power the pumps cooling its reactors and spent fuel again, along with its other safety systems, the IAEA said.
Almost three weeks on emergency generators
The ZNPP had been without external power since 20 August, Energoatom said. Its critically important systems ran on diesel generators throughout, a mode that created additional risks to nuclear and radiation safety at Europe's largest nuclear plant, the company said.
The plant lost Ferosplavna-1, its sole remaining power line, to military activity north of the Dnipro on 20 August, the IAEA said. The plant had been facing a possible station blackout as the diesel reserves for those generators diminished. The site had cut its running generators to two and begun cycling its cooling pumps to save fuel.
