Russia says 'no possibility' of electricity supply post Kyiv's attack on ZNPP power line

In a significant development, Russia has now claimed that the Ukrainian side has deliberately cut off the last power line to Zaporizhzhia NPP, reducing the possibility of electricity supply to Ukraine. A member of the main council of the regional administration, Vladimir Rogov, said on Friday that the fourth line was interrupted by the Ukrainian side, and now it is physically impossible to transfer electricity to the right bank of the Dnipro.

"Yesterday, as far as I know, the fourth line was interrupted, so it is physically impossible to transfer electricity to the right bank of the Dnipro [river]. According to the information I have, this energy is not supplied [to Ukraine]. "There is no physical possibility to do this," Rogov told the Rossiya 1 broadcaster, reported Sputnik.

Meanwhile, it has also come to light that the NPP is working as normal and that energy is supplied to the territories liberated by Russian forces. On the other hand, Ukrainian operator Energoatom claimed that Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) was completely disconnected from the power grid on Thursday and that this happened due to continuous shelling by Russian forces in recent days. The Ukrainian nuclear power company stated it lost connection to the grid after Russia opened fire at the ash pits of the Zaporizhzhia Thermal Power Plant (ZTPP), which is located next to the ZNPP in southern Ukraine. It noted that three other lines of communication were previously damaged during shelling by the Russian forces.

"The actions of the invaders caused a complete disconnection of the ZNPP from the power grid - the first in the history of the plant. The NPP's own needs for power supply are currently provided from the energy system of Ukraine through the communication line between the ZNPP and Zaporizhzhya TPP," Energoatom wrote on Telegram.

It is pertinent to note here that Russia has repeatedly blamed Ukraine for propagating a fake agenda about the NPP to create an exclusion zone of up to 18 miles (30 kilometres) around the Zaporizhzhia region. Moscow accused Ukraine for carrying out attacks only to blame Russia  for any major disaster.

IAEA declares possibility of permanent presence at Zaporizhzhia NPP

Meanwhile, IAEA Chief Rafal Grossi on Thursday stated that given the situation at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) the agency needs to establish a "permanent presence" there.  Earlier, Grossi had also stated that the IAEA's mission would reach the nuclear power plant in the upcoming days.

In an interview with RFI radio, Grossi said, "This is a difficult mission... We need to secure a route, and we need to do it in coordination between the two countries... We also need to rely on the support of the UN and its armoured vehicles to take us to the place where We need to clearly define the parameters of the mission and, possibly, establish a permanent agency presence on site."

Image: AP