Enlarge image

The Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant

Photo: Victor / dpa

Ukrainian employees at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine, which is occupied by Russian troops, have refused to sign contracts with the Russian nuclear company Rosatom. According to the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Rafael Grossi, the Russian occupiers have been denying them access to the nuclear power plant since last Thursday. Grossi said on the French radio station RF1 that he would examine the effects on the operation of the power plant during his visit on Wednesday. The six reactors there are currently shut down, but the fuel rods still need to be cooled. The Russian troops rely on the cooperation of Ukrainian employees.

According to Grossi, the staff at the nuclear power plant has already shrunk from around 11,500 to 4,500 employees under Russian occupation, as he announced before his trip to Ukraine. He announced that the low staffing level would be a central topic in his discussions with the Russian operators of the nuclear power plant.

“It is essential that the power plant has enough qualified and trained personnel for operational safety and protection of the system,” says Grossi. The IAEA Director General had also warned in the United Nations Security Council that the staffing level at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant was “unsustainable” in the long term. The power plant near the front is the largest nuclear power plant in Europe. It has been under Russian occupation since March 2022.

Since Thursday, according to instructions from the Russian nuclear power plant management, specialists from the Ukrainian state-owned nuclear company Energoatom have no longer been allowed to work in Zaporizhzhia, as stated in the IAEA's latest management report. Accordingly, only former Energoatom specialists who have signed contracts with the Russian operator, as well as personnel sent from Russia, work at the plant.

According to this information, the Russian management of the power plant pointed out to the permanent IAEA observers on site that Russian nuclear power plants get by with significantly fewer personnel than Ukrainian ones.

czl/Reuters/dpa