Power cut for a time to Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant; Kyiv blames Russian strike
VIENNA (Reuters) -All external power lines supplying electricity to the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine were down for several hours on Friday, the U.N. nuclear watchdog said, but the station's management later said power had been restored.
The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Rafael Grossi, acknowledged that power had been restored after 3 1/2 hours. But he added in a statement on X that nuclear safety "remains extremely precarious in Ukraine."
Ukraine's energy minister blamed Russian shelling for severing the last power line to the plant and its six reactors. The country's power distribution operator said its technicians had taken action to restore it.
Europe's biggest nuclear power plant, which is not operating but still requires power to keep its nuclear fuel cool, switched during the outage to running on diesel generators, the IAEA said.
The organization has repeatedly warned of the risk of a catastrophic accident at Zaporizhzhia, which is located near the front line in the war in Ukraine. Its reactors are shut down, but the nuclear fuel inside them still needs to be cooled, which requires constant power.
The plant's Russia-installed management issued a statement on Telegram saying the high-voltage line to the plant had been restored.
The statement said there had been no disruptions to operations at the plant, no violations of security procedures and no rise in background radiation levels beyond normal levels.
The IAEA had earlier said that the plant had lost all off-site power for the ninth time during the military conflict and for the first time since late 2023. "The ZNPP currently relies on power from its emergency diesel generators, underlining (the) extremely precarious nuclear safety situation," it said.
Ukrainian Energy Minister German Galuschenko wrote on Telegram that a Russian strike had cut off the plant.
"The enemy struck the power line connecting the temporarily occupied (Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Plant) with the integrated power system of Ukraine."
Ukrenergo, the sole operator of high-voltage lines in Ukraine, said its specialists had brought it back into service.
"Ukrenergo specialists have brought back into service the high-voltage line which supplies the temporarily occupied power station," it said on Telegram.
Neither the IAEA nor the plant's Russian-installed management initially cited a cause for the cut-off.
Russian forces seized the Zaporizhzhia station in the first weeks of Russia's February 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Each side regularly accuses the other of firing or taking other actions that could trigger a nuclear accident.
(Reporting by Francois Murphy in Vienna and Ronald Popeski in WinnipegEditing by Peter Graff and Matthew Lewis)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
17 minutes ago
- The Star
BRICS nations voice 'serious concerns' over Trump tariffs
RIO DE JANEIRO (AFP): BRICS leaders meeting in Rio de Janeiro on Sunday are expected to decry US President Donald Trump's "indiscriminate" trade tariffs, saying they are illegal and risk hurting the global economy. Emerging nations, which represent about half the world's population and 40 percent of global economic output, have united over "serious concerns" about US import tariffs, according to a draft summit statement obtained by AFP on Saturday. Since coming to office in January, Trump has threatened allies and rivals alike with a slew of punitive duties. His latest salvo comes in the form of letters informing trading partners of new tariff rates that will soon enter into force. The draft summit declaration does not mention the United States or its president by name, and could yet be amended by leaders gathering for talks Sunday and Monday. But it is a clear political shot directed at Washington from 11 emerging nations, including Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. "We voice serious concerns about the rise of unilateral tariff and non-tariff measures which distort trade and are inconsistent with WTO (World Trade Organization) rules," the draft text says. It warns that such measures "threaten to further reduce global trade" and are "affecting the prospects for global economic development." - Xi no show - Conceived two decades ago as a forum for fast-growing economies, the BRICS have come to be seen as a Chinese-driven counterbalance to Western power. But the summit's political punch will be depleted by the absence of China's Xi Jinping, who is skipping the annual meeting for the first time in his 12 years as president. That absence has prompted fevered speculation in some quarters. "The simplest explanation may hold the most explanatory power. Xi recently hosted Lula in Beijing," said Ryan Hass, a former China director at the US National Security Council who is now with the Brookings Institution think tank. The Chinese leader will not be the only notable absentee. War crime-indicted Russian President Vladimir Putin is also opting to stay away, but will participate via video link, according to the Kremlin. Hass said Putin's non-attendance and the fact that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be a guest of honor in Brazil could also be factors in Xi's absence. "Xi does not want to appear upstaged by Modi," who will receive a state lunch, he said. "I expect Xi's decision to delegate attendance to Premier Li (Qiang) rests amidst these factors." Still, the Xi no-show is a blow to host President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who wants Brazil to play a bigger role on the world stage. In the year to November 2025, Brazil will have hosted a G20 summit, a BRICS summit, and COP30 international climate talks, all before heading into fiercely contested presidential elections next year, in which he is expected to run. Lula warmly welcomed leaders and dignitaries on Saturday, including China's Premier Li Qiang, as the leftist president hosted a pre-summit business forum in Rio. "Faced with the resurgence of protectionism, it is up to emerging countries to defend the multilateral trade regime and reform the international financial architecture," Lula told the event. Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian, whose nation is still reeling from a 12-day conflict with Israel, is also skipping the meeting and will be represented by Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi. A source familiar with the negotiations said Iran had sought a tougher condemnation of Israel and the United States over their recent bombing of Iranian military, nuclear and other sites. But one diplomatic source said the text would give the "same message" that BRICS delivered last month. Then Iran's allies expressed "grave concern" about strikes against Iran, but did not explicitly mention Israel or the United States. Artificial intelligence and health will also be on the agenda at the summit. Original members of the bloc Brazil, Russia, India, and China have been joined by South Africa and, more recently, Saudi Arabia, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Ethiopia and Indonesia. - AFP
Barnama
an hour ago
- Barnama
Indian Finance Minister Says Partnership With Russia Remains ‘Resilient And Steadfast'
NEW DELHI, July 6 (Bernama-TASS) -- Strategic partnership between Russia and India remains resilient and steadfast, Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said following a meeting with her Russian counterpart, Anton Siluanov, ahead of a BRICS summit in Rio de Janeiro. The minister "observed that India and Russia enjoy exemplary levels of mutual trust and understanding and our Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership remains resilient and steadfast," the ministry said on X. Sitharaman also "congratulated Russia for its successful chairship of the BRICS in 2024 and said that India will continue to leverage the BRICS platform to build South-South cooperation in areas of common interest.
The Star
3 hours ago
- The Star
Russia downs 120 Ukrainian drones overnight, Defence Ministry says
FILE PHOTO: A service member of a drone unit of the 24th Separate Mechanized Brigade named after King Danylo of the Ukrainian Armed Forces controls a heavy combat drone while it flies over positions of Russian troops, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Donetsk Region, Ukraine June 12, 2025. REUTERS/Serhii Korovainyi/File Photo MOSCOW (Reuters) -Russia's anti-aircraft systems downed 120 Ukrainian drones overnight, mostly in regions bordering Ukraine, the Russian Defence Ministry said on Sunday, reporting no damage. More than three years into the war, Ukraine has increasingly been using drones to attack targets deep inside Russia. The Defence Ministry said the drones that were intercepted overnight included 30 over the western Bryansk region, 29 in the Kursk region and 17 in Belgorod - all of which share a border with Ukraine. Another 18 drones were downed over the Oryol region, which borders Kursk and has been hit by previous Ukrainian drone attacks targeting oil facilities. Russia's civil aviation authority, Rosaviatsiya, said it had lifted restrictions that were introduced overnight to ensure safety due to the drones at airports in St. Petersburg, Kaluga, Moscow and Nizhny Novgorod. (Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin;Editing by Helen Popper)
