The risk of a new disaster: why Russia cannot safely restart the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant
12 February 09:36
Russia lacks the equipment and spare parts needed to safely operate the occupied Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant. There is a risk of a nuclear accident if Russia attempts to restart the plant.
This was stated by the head of Energoatom, Pavlo Kovtonyuk, in a comment to Reuters, as reported by "Komersant Ukrainian".
Technology incompatibility
According to him, Russia will not be able to start up the ZNPP because its control, protection, and monitoring systems are Ukrainian-made and incompatible with the technologies used in Russia.
“This means that it is a Ukrainian project, and the spare parts are manufactured at Ukrainian enterprises. Without spare parts, it is simply impossible to operate the plant,” Kovtonyuk stressed.
In addition, to restart the plant, it is necessary to replace the American fuel used in the reactors and completely change the power unit control system, which is designed for use with this specific type of nuclear fuel.
Kovtonyuk recalled that the available water reserves are insufficient to cool even one reactor after the destruction of the Kakhovka dam in 2023.
A second Chernobyl
The head of Energoatom mentioned the Chernobyl disaster that occurred 40 years ago in Ukraine to describe the risks of any attempt by Russia to restart the plant without access to Ukrainian equipment and expertise.
“No one at the Chernobyl power plant deliberately wanted a disaster. But it happened because the equipment could not operate in the conditions in which it found itself. The situation here is exactly the same,” Kovtonyuk stressed.
The US wants a joint management format for the Zaporizhzhia NPP
The US is proposing a joint management format for the Zaporizhzhia NPP, but it is currently difficult to determine how to start up the plant and manage it, said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
He stressed that the plant is Ukrainian, despite the fact that the Russians consider it theirs due to the occupation.
Earlier, Zelensky said that in negotiations to end the war, the issue of the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant remains one of the most sensitive.
Special status of the ZNPP
The Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant is the largest nuclear power plant in Europe with six reactors. Russian troops seized it in March 2022. The plant is not producing electricity. The six reactors at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant have been in cold shutdown since 2022, relying on external power lines and emergency systems to prevent a complete power outage.
The IAEA maintains a permanent presence at the site to monitor safety amid ongoing shelling.
IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi said that the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant would need “special status” and a cooperation agreement between Russia and Ukraine if a peace agreement is reached.
Peace plan: is it realistic to divide ZNPP electricity between Ukraine and Russia?
One of the points of the peace plan is to start up the ZNPP under the joint control of Ukraine and Russia. Experts warn that the technical condition of the plant and the differences between the power systems make this scenario almost unrealistic.
This point already contradicts a recent IAEA resolution in which the agency called on Russia to return the ZNPP to Ukraine’s control. In addition, such joint control over the plant is impossible under current Ukrainian law, which stipulates that a nuclear power plant can have only one operator — Energoatom.
