IAEA warns of “increasingly tense military situation” at Zaporiya nuclear plant, Ukraine

May 20. (EUROPE PRESS) –

The director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Rafael Grossi, has warned that this Friday an area near the city of Enerhodar, where most of the personnel of the Zaporiya nuclear power plant live, in Ukraine, has been attacked. with artillery fire, which “indicates an increasingly tense military situation in the area.”

IAEA experts present at the plant have reported that the plant has not been affected “but the proximity once again underscored the continuing dangers to nuclear security and protection at a time of heightened speculation about future military operations in the region,” he explained. Grossi in a statement.

The Director General has said that he is committed to carrying out intensive negotiations with all parties in order to protect the plant and help prevent the risk of a severe nuclear accident on the continent.

“It’s very simple: don’t shoot at the plant and don’t use the plant as a military base. It should be in everyone’s interest to agree on a set of principles to protect the plant during conflict,” he said.

THE PERSONNEL OF THE POWER PLANT IN DANGER AND INCREASINGLY REDUCED

There has been a major drop in staff numbers since the fighting began, with staff and their families facing “extremely difficult and stressful conditions in the frontline region during the conflict.”

Earlier this month, agency experts noted a reduction in essential staff, but regular staff returned to the plant on Monday. However, the size of the labor force is still well below its pre-conflict level.

“Our experts have seen a noticeable increase in personnel at the plant this week. At the moment, it has enough personnel for a plant whose reactors are all in shutdown mode. However, it remains clearly insufficient to carry out necessary maintenance and other regular jobs”, denounced Grossi, who has described the situation as “unsustainable”.

He has warned that “the longer the plant has this type of reduced staff, the greater the nuclear security and protection risks will be.”

POWER PROBLEMS

In addition, the Zaporiya plant still relies on the only remaining 750 kilovolt power line in operation for external electricity required for reactor cooling and other essential safety and security functions.

In March, one of the four lines that were operating before the conflict was damaged and has not yet been repaired.

Meanwhile, the IAEA team continues to work to gain access to the nearby Zaporiya thermal power plant, following assurances from Russia’s state nuclear company Rosatom that this would be granted.