Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant switched to backup diesel generators after losing its last working connection to the electricity grid on 8 November. Operator Energoatom said an automatic reconnection attempt failed. The Russian-installed management also reported the outage. The plant still requires electricity to cool nuclear fuel and run safety equipment despite producing no power.
Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant lost its external electricity supply on 8 November and switched to backup diesel generators. Ukraine’s nuclear operator Energoatom said the last working connection to the grid had gone offline. It identified the failed line as the 330 kV Ferrosplavna-1 and said an automatic attempt to reconnect it was unsuccessful. The generators were supplying the plant’s own electricity needs.[1], [2]
The plant is under Russian control and does not generate electricity, but its nuclear fuel still needs cooling and its safety equipment requires power. Without the external connection, those functions depend on the backup generators. Energoatom warned that equipment failure or fuel problems during prolonged generator operation could endanger the essential safety and fuel-cooling systems. That warning describes a conditional safety risk.[1]
The Russian-installed management also announced the loss of external power and said generators were supplying the equipment needed for safe operation. It reported normal radiation levels at the site and in the monitoring area. Responsibility for the damage to the line had not been independently established. Energoatom called for the plant to return to Ukrainian control, while the Russian-installed management said staff were monitoring operating conditions.[1]
