WARSAW: The Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine has been without offsite power for six days, according to the United Nations atomic watchdog chief Rafael Grossi.
Grossi, the director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, stated he met Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha in Warsaw to discuss the situation.
The plant in southeastern Ukraine has been under Russian control since the early stages of the war.
Oleh Korikov, head of Ukraine’s State Nuclear Regulatory Inspectorate, said the lack of external power poses major threats to nuclear and radiation safety.
He called for urgent efforts to restore the external power lines quickly.
The IAEA confirmed the external power lines supplying the plant failed last week for the tenth time during the conflict.
Emergency diesel generators were activated to provide the necessary electricity.
This power is vital for cooling the plant’s reactor fuel and preventing a potential meltdown.
Foreign Minister Sybiha wrote on X that Russia had stolen the Ukrainian nuclear power plant.
He said Russia is trying to forcibly integrate the plant into its own grid despite the growing risk of a nuclear incident.
Sybiha stated that he and Grossi agreed the world cannot allow this situation to continue.
He declared that granting the IAEA temporary stewardship over the plant is the only realistic option. – Reuters
