No power supply means nuclear accident at Zaporizhzhia NPP - Nuclear Regulatory Agency

Due to the damage of a 750-kilovolt line in the area of the Zaporizhzhia thermal power plant by Russia, Zaporizhzhia NPP has been without electricity for nine days already. The damaged line is located on Russian-occupied territory.

The operation of the plant’s safety systems is supported by diesel generators. For now, they provide enough energy to cool the nuclear fuel in six reactors.

"We characterize this as an emergency situation that has not yet escalated into an accident, but it may if urgent measures are not taken – in particular, the immediate restoration of external power supply," Korikov noted.

He added that this happened as a result of the Russian occupation of the plant. Russia not only completely ignores nuclear safety regulations but also deliberately creates obstacles to the restoration of power supply to the station.

If the external power supply is not restored, the temperature of the water in the reactors will rise. The water cools the nuclear fuel: it may overheat, which would lead to the release of radioactive substances into the reactor and beyond.

Blackout at Zaporizhzhia NPP

Since September 23, the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant has experienced its tenth blackout since the beginning of the full-scale war. Energoatom reported that the last external power line connecting the plant to Ukraine’s energy system stopped working.

At the same time, Russia is actively preventing the restoration of the electricity supply. The situation could lead to a nuclear accident, as already confirmed by the International Atomic Energy Agency.

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that the temporarily occupied Zaporizhzhia NPP is currently powered by diesel generators. However, they are not designed to operate in such a mode, and it is already known that one of the generators has failed.