Ukraine's state nuclear company warns of critical safety situation at Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant

Energoatom, Ukraine's state-owned nuclear energy company, has stressed that the condition of the temporarily Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) points to a continued erosion of fundamental nuclear safety principles.

Source: Energoatom on Facebook

Details: On 5 September, IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi announced a localised ceasefire to restore external power supply to the ZNPP, which has been disconnected since 20 August.

This is the 27th time the ZNPP has been disconnected from the power grid since the start of the full-scale invasion. The plant has switched to diesel generator operation.

Energoatom notes that the Russians have been using emergency diesel generators as primary power sources in non-design operating modes for an extended period of over two weeks.

The prolonged and continuous operation of the generators is increasing the risk of Common Cause Failure – one of the most critical threats to nuclear power plant safety.

"Constant cyclical starts and load-switching significantly increase the probability of start-up automation failure," Energoatom warned.

"Even though all the units are in cold shutdown mode, a power outage threatens loss of control over primary safety systems, spent nuclear fuel storage pools and technological parameters."

Background: Energoatom has warned that every blackout at the occupied ZNPP is causing its equipment to deteriorate, including the diesel generators that provide backup power to the plant.

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