With Zaporizhzhia NPP disconnected from Ukraine's electrical grid, Kyiv says Moscow wants to connect it to Russia's
According to Energoatom, Ukraine’s state nuclear power company, the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) has completely lost electricity after being shelled by Russian forces.
As a result of shelling on November 2, the last two high-voltage lines that were connecting to the Ukrainian power grid were damaged, Energoatom reported. Representatives of the company believe that Russia is trying to connect the facility to the Russian grid.
Nine diesel generators in the facility are currently fulfilling the station’s internal power needs, such as cooling nuclear materials, and have enough fuel to last for 15 days, according to the company.
Renat Karchaa, an advisor to the head of Russia’s own state nuclear power company, alleged that Ukraine had cut off power from electrical lines providing powering the station, and that two power units providing heat to residents of the town of Enerhodar had lost power as a result.
On the morning of November 3, Russian National Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev claimed that Russian intelligence had prevented a terrorist attack at the Zaporizhzhia station, though he didn’t give any further details. Local occupation official Vladimir Rogov said that a cache of more than a kilogram of explosives had been found at the facility.
In early November, Ukraine’s State Nuclear Regulatory Inspectorate reported that Russian forces were building an “unknown object” on the territory of the Zaporizhzhia NPP.
