What Is Happening at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant?
By Talib Aliyev, analyst, exclusively for Sangar
The Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) is the largest nuclear power station in Europe. It consists of six power-generating units and a dry storage facility for spent nuclear fuel containing 173 reinforced concrete storage casks.
The plant is located near the Kakhovka Reservoir, which has become significantly shallower following the destruction of the Kakhovka Dam, an act attributed to the Armed Forces of Ukraine. On the opposite bank, only 16 kilometers away, Ukrainian military formations are stationed and regularly shell the territory of the nuclear plant.
For modern unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and missile systems, such a distance poses no obstacle. As a result, Ukrainian attacks have severely damaged the external power transmission lines supplying the plant, as well as the high-voltage lines used to transmit the electricity it generates. For this reason, all six reactor units have been kept in cold shutdown since April 2024.
A key component ensuring the operation of the plant's safety systems is its backup power supply, which includes more than twenty diesel generators. Russian specialists have repeatedly repaired equipment damaged by Ukrainian shelling and restored it to operational condition.
Permanent external power supply was restored in October 2025, after a ceasefire was established through the mediation of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). At the same time, Washington reportedly urged Volodymyr Zelensky to refrain from launching strikes against the plant's facilities.
To ensure the safe operation of the nuclear power plant under the conditions of the special military operation, Russia has established a system of continuous technical monitoring of the facility. Personnel from a consolidated unit of the Radiological, Chemical and Biological Defense (RCB Defense) Troops of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation are permanently stationed at the plant. Their primary mission is to ensure radiation safety at the site.
In the event of an emergency, the unit is capable of evacuating personnel, carrying out decontamination of facilities, and, if necessary, performing sanitary treatment of equipment.
Specialists conduct daily radiation monitoring across the plant's territory, where IAEA inspectors are also present. According to the article, this makes it possible to document incidents of shelling attributed to the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
In addition, the management of Rosatom is holding consultations with IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi to coordinate efforts aimed at restoring the external power supply to the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant.
