The Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, the largest in Europe, is again on the verge of blackout due to damage to the power line caused by Russian shelling. Since March 4, 2022, the station has been under the control of the Russian Federation, and due to another attack on the energy infrastructure, the situation has become critical. As informs press service of NAEC “Energoatom”, on August 22, as a result of shelling, the overhead line PL-330kV “Zaporizka TES – Ferosplavna”, through which the temporarily occupied ZNPP received power from the Ukrainian power system to meet its basic needs, was damaged.
Currently, the station is connected to the Ukrainian power system by only one PL-750kV “Dniprovska” line. The loss of this line could lead to an emergency because without external power, the pumps that cool the reactor cores and fuel holding pools could stop, posing a serious threat to nuclear safety.
The situation at the nuclear power plant is getting worse and worse under the control of the Russian troops, who do not have the necessary qualifications for the safe operation of the nuclear plant. In particular, there was a fire at the station that destroyed one of the two cooling towers, which indicates negligence or deliberate arson. The transformation of the station into a military base makes its safe operation even more difficult.
The only way to restore nuclear and radiation safety is the immediate return of the Zaporizhzhia NPP to the control of Ukraine and its legal operator – NPP Energoatom, as well as the withdrawal of the Russian military from the plant and its territory.
