The Zaporizhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine has lost power from outside for more than a week and is currently relying on emergency diesel generators, the United Nations nuclear monitoring agency said.
According to a statement from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the plant needs electricity to maintain cooling for 6 currently inactive reactors, but the on-site diesel oil reserves are only enough for 10 days.
The IAEA added that the storage facility outside the plant has not received any shipments in the past 6 months. However, the plant has just been refueled with diesel fuel from another location outside in the past two days.
Ensuring diesel power is paramount every time a nuclear power plant loses power from outside," said IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi. "The current situation once again shows why reliable external power sources and safe supply lines are indispensable to nuclear safety and security.
According to the statement, the plant lost its normal power supply "after military operations north of the Dnipro River". The Vienna-based agency said it is making efforts to negotiate a local ceasefire to allow repair of power lines.
Previously, the IAEA announced that in the week there were 3 incidents related to unmanned aerial vehicles at the Zaporizhia factory, injuring 2 employees and raising new safety concerns.
The plant is located in southern Ukraine, controlled by the Russian army since March 2022, just weeks after Moscow launched a large-scale military campaign. The two sides in the conflict regularly accuse each other of attacking this facility, which is located on the banks of the Dnipro River - the border of the battle lines in the region.
IAEA expert teams have been permanently present at the plant since September 2022. All 6 reactors of Zaporizhia have been inactive since 2022.
