Incompetent actions taken by the Russian occupation administration led to a partial blackout at Zaporizhzhya NPP, Ukraine’s state nuclear operator Energoatom said in a post on the Telegram messenger app on Nov. 16.
There was reportedly a power outage at the sixth reactor of ZNPP, which automatically triggered the operation of emergency diesel generators and safety systems for 90 minutes.
Read also: IAEA experts access roofs at ZNPP, see no signs of explosives, agency says
Energoatom said that at that time, the occupation management of the plant was investigating the causes of the blackout and deciding what to do with the consequences of their incompetent actions.
The Energoatom report was confirmed by information from the IAEA inspectors who are on the site of the temporarily occupied nuclear facility.
Due to the complete unprofessionalism of the Russians, ZNPP is constantly degrading its main equipment and increasing the number of dangerous failures, Energoatom stated.
Read also: 800 Ukrainian specialists continue working at Zaporizhzhya NPP
At the same time, the presence of Russia at Europe’s largest nuclear facility threatens nuclear and radiation safety, Energoatom says.
ZNPP under Russian occupation – What is known
The largest nuclear power plant in Europe, Zaporizhzhya NPP, was seized by the Russians after fighting in Enerhodar on March 4, 2022. The ZNPP buildings were damaged by Russian shelling in several places, and the plant’s employees were taken prisoner. The Russian occupation forces deployed materiel, ammunition, and their military at the plant, effectively turning it into a logistics and military base.
Read also: Russian invaders carrying out military drills at occupied Zaporizhzhya NPP – video
On June 22, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy reported that Russia was considering a scenario of a terrorist attack at the seized Zaporizhzhya NPP and had “prepared everything for this.”
Ukraine’s spy chief Kyrylo Budanov also said that the Russians had completed preparations for a possible terrorist attack on the occupied Zaporizhzhya NPP. According to him, equipment with explosives had been placed near four of the six reactors, and a cooler was mined.
On Aug. 4, the IAEA mission gained access to the roofs of two ZNPP reactor buildings after a month of requests, but said it found no traces of explosives.
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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine