One of the reactors at Ukraine’s Zaporijia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP), controlled by Russian troops, has been “cold shut down” after a water leak was discovered in one of its generators, it was announced Thursday.
“ZNPP will place unit ‘4’ in cold shutdown to determine the exact cause of the detected water leak and perform maintenance to repair the affected steam generator”emphasized the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in a statement.
Despite the incident, no emission of radioactivity was detected, the UN agency added.
The IAEA, which has a team of inspectors at the nuclear power plant, also announced that reactor ‘6’ will go into “hot shutdown” in the coming days to produce steam, which is used for various safety operations, such as handling liquid nuclear waste.
The agency also defended this Thursday that the safest way for the nuclear plant would be to install external steam-generating equipment.
The IAEA also announced that the main power line had been disconnected this Thursday and that the power station had to resort to a backup connection, without however having to resort to emergency generators, as has happened several times in the past.
“The repeated interruptions in the electrical connection highlight the ongoing and precarious situation of safety and nuclear protection at the plant”emphasized IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi.
Last week’s inspections failed to detect the presence of mines or explosives in new locations, but confirmed the existence of these artifacts in places already discovered on July 23, the UN agency added.
In early July, Ukraine accused Moscow of preparing a provocation, with the Kiev military guaranteeing that on the roofs of reactors 3 and 4 there were “objects resembling explosives”.
Since the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the IAEA has demanded that a security zone be created around the plant.
After falling into the hands of the Russian army on March 4, 2022, Europe’s largest power station was the target of a fire and several power grid cuts, a precarious situation that has raised fears of a nuclear accident.
Since the beginning of June, the Ukrainian army has been conducting offensive operations in the east and south to try to recapture areas occupied by Russian-speaking separatist militias and Russian troops, including in the Zaporizia region.
Source: DN
