Aiea: “All 6 reactors of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant were coldly shut down”
All six reactors of the Ukrainian nuclear power plant in Zaporizhzhia have been coldly shut down: this was confirmed by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Today there was a cold shutdown of block number 4, coinciding with the end of the winter heating season in Enerhodar, where most of the plant’s staff lives.
“I welcome this step, which has long been recommended by the IAEA, because it improves the overall safety of the facility,” said IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi.
Since October 2022, at least one reactor has been held in hot shutdown to provide heating to the population of Enerhodar and steam to treat the plant’s liquid waste. However, with the recent installation and commissioning of four diesel steam generators, as recommended by the IAEA, all units have switched to cold shutdown, improving safety. Grossi once again underlined the fragility of the situation, underlining that, although the cold shutdown state is positive as it provides an additional safety margin in the event of an accident, the plant is still exposed to great risks, as demonstrated by recent drone attacks.
IAEA experts at the facility reported hearing 16 artillery shots in less than half an hour, underlining the danger of the situation. Russia and Ukraine have blamed each other for the attacks on the power plant which have hit one of the six reactors since last week.
The attacks, the first directed at the plant since November 2022, represent “a major escalation of the nuclear safety risks in Ukraine, significantly increasing the risk of a nuclear accident” Grossi said this week. The IAEA has been calling for the creation of a safety zone for months around Zaporizhzhia to avoid an accident and regularly reports the precarious situation of the plant after the Russian occupation.