IAEA gives update on demilitarising Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant as war attacks continue

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)  on Saturday announced that it hopes for a deal on the demilitarized zone around Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant by the end of 2022. "There is a concrete proposal on securing Zaporizhzhia and important progress has been made,"  Rafael Grossi, International Atomic Energy Agency director general said in a statement published on Dec 2. IAEA carried out a nuclear safety and security mission to the South Ukraine Nuclear Power Plant (SUNPP) this week and stepped up its efforts to help prevent a nuclear accident during the current armed conflict in the country, Grossi informed. 

As was requested by Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Ukraine, IAEA mission provided on-site assistance and support in nuclear safety and security to the country’s nuclear power plants (NPPs), including the SUNPP as well as the Rivne and Khmelnytskyi NPPs, and the Chornobyl site to which the IAEA sent a mission last week. 

Director General Grossi met Ukraine's foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba

Director General Grossi met Ukraine's foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba in Bucharest, and Grossi assured the IAEA will strengthen its presence at these NPPs. IAEA's Director General led a high-level IAEA delegation to the SUNPP in march, last time. And this week’s mission was the first time ever since Russia's invasion that a team of experts stayed at the site for several days to acquire a better understanding of the nuclear safety and security situation and of the plant’s needs.

IAEA has been present for the past three months with a team of four experts at Ukraine’s largest NPP, Zaporizhzhya. During the mission to the SUNPP, the IAEA team held a meeting with the management and staff and conducted interviews in the areas of nuclear and radiation safety, nuclear security, emergency preparedness, and response, and logistics and communications, the agency informed. On November 23, the IAEA team tackled the loss of external power and the subsequent shutdown of the two operating units, which resulted from attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure. The site’s diesel generators were able to provide power to maintain nuclear safety and security systems.

As the fierce battle between the Ukrainian and Russian troops continues, ZNPP continues to receive off-site power through a single 750 kilovolt (kV) external power line, with one 330kV backup line from the nearby thermal power plant switchyard available.IAEA had earlier warned both Russian and Ukrainian soldiers that they risked a major disaster as they fought a heavy battle near Europe's largest nuclear power plant.

IAEA asserted that the troops are "playing with fire." This week, in order to look at the plant's safety, Russian Federation announced ZNPP’s Chief Engineer Yuri Chernichuk as the plant's director. The Ukraine operator Energoatom has rejected this appointment and has appointed Dmytro Verbytskyi as acting director general. IAEA reiterated that the IAEA regards ZNPP as a "Ukrainian facility" and Grossi expressed concern about the decision-making situation and contradictions regarding the chain of command at the plant witnessing heavy attacks.