IAEA urges "cold shutdown" at Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant due to increasing accident risk
Russian invaders at the occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) have switched power unit No. 4 from the cold shutdown mode to the hot shutdown mode; this increases the threat of a radiation accident at the ZNPP.
Source: Petro Kotin, President of Energoatom State Enterprise; Energoatom, IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi; International Atomic Energy Agency
Details: The IAEA emphasised the need to comply with the rules established by the State Nuclear Regulatory Inspectorate of Ukraine at the ZNPP, which require all power units to be put into a cold shutdown state.
The IAEA said power unit No. 6 is being switched from a hot shutdown mode into a cold one.
Energoatom believes that manipulations conducted by the Russians increase the threat of a radiation accident at the ZNPP.
Quote from Kotin: "The presence of Russian military personnel, weapons and heavy equipment at the site of the Zaporizhzhia NPP, as well as non-compliance with the requirements of the State Nuclear Regulatory Inspectorate's licences, leads to the inevitable degradation of the plant's equipment and systems, which are important for safety. This can lead not only to an increase in the number of equipment failures, but also provoke the occurrence of a radiation accident."
Quote from Grossi: "Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) is now once again using reactor unit 4 to generate steam for various safety functions at the facility after the repair of a water leak detected in mid-August."
Background:
- On 3 October, the International Atomic Energy Agency conducted a regular rotation of its mission at the temporarily occupied Zaporizhzhia NPP.
- According to the IAEA, the occupiers are placing Unit No. 6 of the ZNPP out of a "hot" shutdown mode into a "cold" one.
- In August, the Russians caused an incident of water leakage from the first reactor circuit to the second at the 4th power unit of the ZNPP.
- Experts from the International Atomic Energy Agency also discovered anti-personnel landmines on the premises of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant.
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