The Ukrainian power plant in Zaporizhzhia, in the hands of Russian forces since the large-scale invasion launched in February last year, was “on the brink of a nuclear accident” overnight due to a temporary power outage, the ministry said today. Energoatom operator.
“Last night there was a total blackout at the Zaporizhia power plant,” and generators had to be used, Energoatom said on its Telegram channel, adding that supply at Europe’s largest nuclear plant was restored a few hours later.
“The (Russian) occupation forces do not care about the safety of the nuclear power plant,” accused the president of the Ukrainian state company, Petro Kotin.
“They will continue to create dangerous situations, blackmailing the entire world” with the risk of “a nuclear accident,” added the manager, in statements quoted by the AFP news agency.
Two power lines that fed the plant “were cut off,” one of them due to “an air attack,” the operating company detailed.
Power to the plant was later restored, although the incident jeopardized the plant’s proper functioning, Energoatom said, so much so that it was “on the verge of a nuclear and radiation accident.”
In a statement, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) indicated that the plant was “temporarily deprived of electricity during the night,” and that it was the eighth power outage of this type since the beginning of the invasion. Russian.
“The recent external blackout is a further reminder of the precarious nuclear safety situation at the plant, which can be affected by events far away from the site itself. The IAEA continues to do everything it can to help prevent a nuclear accident,” he said. the director of that UN agency, the Argentine Rafael Grossi.
“I also appeal to all parties not to take any action that could further endanger the plant,” he added.
Grossi is in Dubai to participate in COP28, the summit against climate change, and there he met with the general director of the Russian state atomic corporation Rosatom, Alexey Lijachov, to discuss the safety of the Zaporizhia plant.
“Attention was focused on issues related to ensuring the nuclear safety of the plant,” said a statement from the Russian firm cited by the Sputnik news agency.
This text indicates that the parties discussed, in particular, the work of the IAEA mission at the plant and the next rotation of experts who carry out a permanent control mission there, scheduled for December 5.
These IAEA observers have been present in Zaporizhzhia since September 1, 2022, after Grossi’s first visit and in the midst of accusations crossed between Russia and Ukraine for attacks against their facilities or against the sources that provide external electricity supply. .
Source: Ambito
