The Director-General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, IAEA, Rafael Grossi, on 7 February, 2024, led a team that visited the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant belonging to Ukraine but, occupied by Russia since 2022.
This is the fourth visit by Grossi to the plant since the Russia-Ukraine war started.
The IAEA team observed that the physical integrity of the plant is “relatively stable.”
The Uranium fuel in the store is safe and most importantly, there is enough water for cooling the reactors.
The natural body of water from the Nova Kakhovka dam was disrupted when the dam was damaged in the fighting. Wells were drilled to provide the needed water to cool the reactors and prevent a meltdown
Grossi was happy that fighting around the plant has abated.
The team visited Ukraine before traveling to the plant and will visit Russia after.
The Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant has been a scene of intense fighting since 2022. It came under heavy shelling on the night of 19 November and the morning of 20 November, 2022, forcing the IAEA to raise alarm over an impending nuclear disaster.
Both Russia and Ukraine accused each other of being responsible.
There were up to 12 explosions; one of them was by where spent nuclear fuel is stored.
The Director-General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, IAEA, Rafael Grossi, described the attacks as “completely unacceptable.”
No damage to the reactors or radiation leaks was however, reported.
Grossi visited President Vladimir Putin on 11 October, 2022 to discuss protection of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant amidst the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war after a similar visit to Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky.
He sought a nuclear safety area around the plant to serve as a de-militarised zone.
A nine-member IAEA inspection team led by the Director-General arrived at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant on 1 September, 2022 to assess the situation and stabilise it.
Two IAEA members of staff were left permanently, at the plant.
Grossi submitted a 52-page report on his visit to the UN Security Council which was deliberated upon at both the Security Council meeting and the 77th UN General Assembly, without any headway.
Russia announced it took-over the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant which it seized in the ongoing war on 4 March, 2022.
Russian President, Vladimir Putin, on 5 October, 2022 signed into law the Russian parliament’s approval of the result of the referendum in four occupied territories belonging to Ukraine.
In the referendum held in Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, Luhansk and Donetsk late September, 2022 the people voted overwhelmingly, to join Russia.
The vote was however, controversial having been condemned by NATO, US and Ukraine as coercive and stage-managed to favour Russia.
The UN and IAEA are concerned about the fighting damaging the plant and causing a nuclear disaster in the entire region and beyond.
The Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant has the largest of the 15 nuclear reactors in Ukraine and is the biggest nuclear power plant in Europe with six pressurised water reactors of 1,000 mw each.
All the reactors are switched off, but have to be cooled to remove residual heat.
