Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant lost external power for the twentieth time since the start of the full-scale war and switched to diesel generators
On June 20, the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant was left without external power supply for the twentieth time since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion and automatically switched to backup diesel generators. This was reported by the Ministry of Energy of Ukraine.
The ministry noted that due to Russian military actions, the station lost power from the 330 kV Ferosplavna-1 power transmission line.
After that, the emergency diesel generators started automatically. They are to provide backup power supply necessary for cooling the reactor core and maintaining other critical nuclear safety functions at the facility.
The Ministry of Energy once again emphasized that Russia is creating threats to global nuclear safety through military actions in Ukraine, in particular near the ZNPP.
“The only way to avoid a disaster at the largest nuclear power plant in Europe is to completely demilitarize the plant and transfer it under the full control of a licensed Ukrainian operator,” the Ministry of Energy emphasized.
At the same time, the IAEA reported that the reason for the shutdown of the external 330 kV power line of Ferrosplavna-1 was a failure in the internal power networks of the plant itself.
External power supply to the Zaporizhia NPP was restored on June 13, which was the 19th blackout since the station was occupied by Russian troops, lasting almost three days.
The 750 kV line has been out of service for over two months. Because of this, the Zaporizhia NPP was completely dependent on the only 330 kV line, which provided the electricity needed to cool the six shut-down reactors.
