Ukraine war: Air strike – Ukraine takes four reactors offline

According to official information, Ukraine has had to temporarily shut down four nuclear reactors due to a Russian air strike. The government in Kiev made this statement in a letter to the International Atomic Energy Agency in Vienna. As requested, the IAEA published a letter from a member state and confirmed the facts. “I am very concerned about the growing vulnerability of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure and the potential impact this may have on the safety of the active nuclear power plants in Ukraine,” said Director General Rafael Grossi.

During the heavy Russian air attack last Monday, reactors 1, 3 and 4 at the Rivne nuclear power plant had to be taken offline in the morning, Ukraine reported. The output of the South Ukraine nuclear power plant was increased for this purpose. Due to voltage fluctuations in the network, the third reactor block of this plant was then switched off in the afternoon. “The Russian Federation continues to deliberately target Ukraine’s energy infrastructure and wants to interrupt the operation of the nuclear power plants that supply most of Ukraine’s electricity,” the letter said.

Russia has already destroyed or damaged many coal, gas and hydroelectric power plants with bombardments from the air. There have been no attacks on the nuclear power plants under Ukrainian control, but they are affected by fluctuations in the power grid. The largest Ukrainian nuclear power plant, Zaporizhia, is occupied by the Russian army and is idle.

The IAEA is appealing to both sides not to endanger the safety of nuclear facilities. Grossi announced another trip to the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant next week.