Russia is building a floating pumping station for the occupied Zaporizhzhia NPP
9 June 11:21
The Russian state corporation Rosatom has announced the start of construction of a floating pumping station with a capacity of up to 80,000 cubic meters per hour to supply water to the temporarily occupied Zaporizhzhia NPP. This was stated by Rosatom CEO Alexei Likhachev after talks with an IAEA delegation in Kaliningrad, "Komersant Ukrainian" reports.
Consequences of Russian aggression
Problems with the water supply of Europe’s largest nuclear power plant arose as a result of the Russian bombing of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant in June 2023. This terrorist act led to an environmental disaster and created additional risks to nuclear safety.
Currently, the occupiers are cooling the reactors through 11 underground wells built by the Russian Rosenergoatom. However, this is not enough for the full operation of the power units at their design capacity.
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Illegal plans of the occupiers
According to Likhachev, Rosatom has developed a “comprehensive plan for the phased commissioning of ZNPP,” which is currently being approved by the Russian government and the Ministry of Energy. The plan includes:
- restoration of power grids;
- “legal work” (in fact, the legalization of the illegal seizure of the Ukrainian NPP);
- construction of a floating pumping station.
The Russian side states that the implementation of the plans is possible only
“subject to the removal of all military threats”,
effectively demanding that Ukraine stop trying to liberate its territory.
However, preparations are underway. As reported by , Russia is finalizing the connection of the ZNPP to its power grid.
International position
IAEA representatives continue to call for the demilitarization of the area around ZNPP and the return of the plant to Ukrainian control. Ukraine has repeatedly emphasized that any actions of the occupiers on the territory of the nuclear power plant are illegal and threaten nuclear safety not only in Ukraine but also in Europe.
Zaporizhzhia NPP has been under Russian occupation since March 2022. All power units of the plant are currently in cold shutdown mode.
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ZNPP
Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) is the largest nuclear power plant in Europe and the third largest in the world by total capacity. Located in the Zaporizhzhia region near the city of Enerhodar, it consists of six nuclear power units of 1 GW each. Its construction began in 1981, and the first unit was commissioned in 1984. The last unit, the sixth, came on line in 1995.
ZNPP annually produced about 40 billion kWh of electricity, which was about 20% of Ukraine’s total power generation. It is also the first nuclear power plant in the country to have a dry spent fuel storage facility.
The Russian army seized ZNPP on the night of March 4, 2022, after shelling the nuclear facility. Russia has also occupied the city of Enerhodar, near which the nuclear power plant is located.
Since the beginning of the Russian occupation, Zaporizhzhia NPP has experienced eight full blackouts and one partial blackout, with the launch of emergency diesel generators and safety systems. According to Energoatom, their failure threatens to cause an emergency.
The last time the plant faced a blackout was on August 23 last year.
