The Zaporizhzhia NPP (ZNPP) in southern Ukraine is under Russian control and will remain so, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on 28 November. He was responding to a statement by Petro Kotin, head of Ukrainian nuclear utility Energoatom, who told TSN in an interview, "There are some signs showing that they [Russian troops] might be going to leave the Zaporizhzhia NPP. First of all, there have been a lot of publications in the Russian press saying that the Zaporizhzhia NPP could be left and handed over to the IAEA's control." However he also noted that there were currently no signs of the Russians leaving the plant. His comment, however, were widely reported in the Ukrainian and Western press. Also, Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak had said the previous day that he had no doubt Russian forces would leave the plant. "The defence line is starting to retreat to the borders of the Russian Federation," he told Ukrainian television, adding that Ukraine would take the plant back.
Peskov firmly denied this at a press briefing, where he said: "There is no need to look for any signs where they do not exist and cannot be.”
The Ukrainian statements were also denied by the Russian authorities in Energodar, where most of the ZNPP staff live. "The media are actively spreading false news that Russia is allegedly planning to withdraw from Energodar and leave the NPP. This information is not true," the administration said in a Telegram channel. Vladimir Rogov, a member of the main council of the Zaporozhye region administration said Ukrainian special services were responsible for the reports of an impending withdrawal of the Russian military from ZNPP. He insisted that Russian troops will not abandon either the ZNPP or Energodar.
Since Russia took control of ZNPP in March the Russian national guard has been protecting the station and on 5 October, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree formally transferring ZNPP to Russian jurisdiction under nuclear utility Rosenergoatom (part of Rosatom). A Russian Federal State Unitary Enterprise. Zaporizhzhia NPP. has been established by Rosenergoatom to operate the plant. It is headed by the former chief engineer of Russia’s Balakov NPP, Oleg Romanenko. However, Energoatom continues to claim ownership of the plant and the IAEA recognises this claim.
Since March, ZNPP has been subjected to frequent shelling resulting in total loss of power on several occasions causing diesel back-up generators to begin operating to ensure continued power for essential safety operations. All six units at the plant have been placed in cold shut down but still require power for cooling and other key functions. The critical importance of a reliable external energy supply has been repeatedly emphasised by International Atomic Energy Agency
(IAEA) Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi, who visited the plant in September, since when a permanent IAEA team of experts has been stationed at the facility.
There have also been several attempts by Ukrainian forces to seize control of the plant using boats to cross the Dnepr river, all repelled by Russian forces. The first took place on the day of Grossi’s visit to the plant, delaying his arrival there by several hours. On 28 November, Rogov told TV channel, Solovyov Live, that 700 Ukrainian fighters “trained just to cross the Dnepr, make landings and capture large facilities” were preparing for further attempts.
Meanwhile, Rosatom said on 25 November that it intended to restore an external energy supply to the plant. “Currently, electricity is supplied to the Zaporizhzhia NPP via two high-voltage lines from the Ukrainian side, which, as the events of recent weeks show, are regularly, and usually simultaneously, are turned off. The disconnection of these lines more than once led to the transfer of energy supply to the Zaporizhzhia NPP to emergency diesel generators,” Rosatom said. “The solution to this problem would be to restore a high-voltage distribution device destroyed by shelling located next to the Zaporizhzhya thermal power plant (TPP). Such attempts have already been made, but each time the answer from the Ukrainian side was targeted shelling of the Zaporizhzhya TPP.”
Rosatom added: “Given the enormous importance of the energy supply reserve for nuclear safety of the Zaporizhzhia NPP, especially in winter, Rosatom made a decision, despite the immediate threat to the life of the personnel involved in these works, to proceed with the restoration of the open distribution device of the Zaporizhzhia TPP.
Rogov confirmed that work had already started to restore the open switchgear of the TPP. He added that work was also underway to switch two ZNPP power units to hot shutdown in order to supply heat to Energodar. Rosenergoatom CEO Renat Karchaa told Rossiya 24 TV channel, “"Heat is being transferred to the city's heat supply system. Of course, the temperature leaves much to be desired. Our nuclear engineers are doing everything they can under these conditions.”
Diplomacy is also continuing on Grossi’s plans to establish a nuclear safety and security protection zone around the plant. On 23 November, Grossi had met a Russian delegation led by Rosatom Director General Alexey Likhachev in Istanbul to discuss this issue following severe shelling of the plant which had occurred three days before. He told CNN on 24 November negotiations were "progressing", but we are talking about a war zone, so it is "not so easy" to agree on the parameters of the agreement. "Of course, what we are talking about is very difficult. This is war. This is a real war, and the security zone I propose is right on the front line. But I believe that we are moving forward.”
Russia has repeatedly expressed its support for a security zone but has made clear that this would be under Russian control. According to Likhachev, Rosatom outlined its proposals for how the security zone would work, including that Ukraine would not be allowed to fire on the zone or to attempt to recover it. In return, Russia will not station any offensive weapons or forces, but only means for physical protection and monitoring the plant, Likhachev said. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is ready to act as a neutral mediator in the exchange of prisoners of war between Russia and Ukraine, if both sides desire such support. “This is the most optimal model for creating a safety zone around a nuclear power plant. Only Russia can guarantee its security and protection, " Rogov told RIA Novosti, commenting on Likhachev's statement.
Mikhail Ulyanov, Russia’s Permanent Representative to International Organisations in Vienna said on 25 November that there is no need for a UN Security Council resolution to establish a protective zone at ZNPP. "As part of the creation of a zone for the protection of physical and nuclear safety at the ZNPP, it is necessary to provide for international monitoring of compliance with the agreements. And it must be effective, otherwise the declaration will remain a blank paper,” he told RIA Novosti.
However, Ulyanov was critical of Grossi for his avoidance of allocating blame for the shelling of ZNPP. In his CNN interview Grossi had said: "It is very difficult for us to determine from inside the station who is doing this. Our main goal is to stop this, and not to play the role of whistleblowers." Ulyanov responded that IAEA staff are well aware of who is firing at the plant. "There are now four IAEA employees at the station, they know perfectly well where the fire is coming from. But the Director General has so far refrained from making clear statements, possibly due to the lack of attributive functions in the mandate and in the statute of the IAEA, that is, the function of determining the guilty party in such situations," he said.
He added: “We are publicly saying that it is high time to call a spade a spade.”
In its latest update on the situation in Ukraine, IAEA said on 25 November that its experts at ZNPP had reported that the facility’s external power connection had been re-established, a day after it was disconnected. It said Ukraine had also confirmed that its three other NPPs – Rivne, South Ukraine and Khmelnytskyy – had been re-connected to the grid and were operating to generate electricity. Power had also been restored to the Chornobyl site, it said.
Separately, Grossi said the IAEA had completed a week-long nuclear safety and security expert mission to Chornobyl, including the Exclusion Zone set up around the plant following the 1986 accident. The mission will help pave the way for upgrades and improvements of the plant’s nuclear security systems. The IAEA experts also gained a better understanding of the plant’s safety and security needs and provided advice and guidance on radiation monitoring. IAEA had announced that it would send permanent missions to Chornobyl as well as to the Rivne, South Ukraine and Khmelnytskyy.
Image: A Russian soldier stands guard near the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant (courtesy of Ria News Agency)
