Ukrainian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Heorhii Tykhyi says Russian forces have damaged a diesel fuel reservoir at the temporarily occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP).
On 25 March, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that he had discussed the ZNPP with US President Donald Trump. He stressed that the plant would not operate without Ukraine and would not supply Russia with electricity. He also noted that restoring the plant’s operations could take over two years. Russia responded to his statements, claiming that the plant is a “Russian nuclear facility.”
“We have received reports about damage to a diesel fuel reservoir at the ZNPP, occupied by Russia. The spilled fuel would have been enough to power the plant’s emergency generators for 25 days,” Tykhyi stated.
According to him, this incident is a direct result of Russia replacing licensed Ukrainian experts with unqualified temporary Russian personnel.
“The Russians not only stole the plant but are also incapable of ensuring its basic safety,” the Foreign Ministry spokesperson added.
Tykhyi stressed that returning the ZNPP to Ukraine’s control is the only way to prevent further incidents.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian nuclear energy and safety expert Olha Kosharna told Espreso TV that the damage to the diesel fuel reservoir at the plant could be preparation for integrating the object into Russia’s power grid.
In case of external power loss due to grid damage, the ZNPP has backup diesel generators that run on diesel fuel. The reservoir in question holds 3,000 tons of fuel and is located outside the plant’s industrial zone, Kosharna explained.
“In my opinion, this is a preparation step for later damaging power lines. Right now, the ZNPP consumes electricity from Ukraine’s unified power system through a 750 kV line (ZNPP – Dnipro substation). The plan could be to disconnect it from Ukraine’s grid and switch it to Russia’s power system. Similar plans existed in the summer of 2022, but our forces prevented them,” Kosharna said.
The expert believes that Russia aims to bring one of the plant’s reactors back online to supply electricity to the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine.
“With the loss of the Kakhovka Reservoir, there is very little water available for cooling active reactors. Therefore, they plan to restart only one reactor for now and are waiting for an operating license under Russian regulations,” Kosharna noted.
Earlier, another energy expert Volodymyr Omelchenko said that even if the US succeeded in securing the plant’s return to Ukrainian control, due to severe technical issues, it would not be possible to immediately reconnect it to Ukraine’s power grid.
Expert: Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant restoration could take two years after peace deal
However, a phased reconnection of several units could take place.
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