Rosatom chief warns of escalating strikes on Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant

The head of Russia’s state nuclear corporation Rosatom, Alexey Likhachev, has said that Ukrainian forces carried out what he described as large-scale strikes on the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) and the nearby city of Enerhodar over the past 24 hours.

“I cannot help but share my growing concern. Since the end of the ceasefire dedicated to Victory Day, both over the weekend and over the past 24 hours, the pressure has been steadily increasing, and the number of attacks on the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) has been steadily increasing. Both on the plant and on Enerhodar. In just the past 24 hours, there have been dozens of strikes in the area of the plant and the city. The city was without power for 11 hours. We have now restored it, although it [the power] occasionally breaks," Likhachev said, Caliber.Az reports via Russian media.

He said social infrastructure in the area was operating under severe strain and alleged that Ukrainian forces had also targeted buses transporting plant workers, as well as residential buildings and infrastructure in Enerhodar.

Likhachev further stated that the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant contains around 2,600 tons of nuclear fuel, warning that any incident involving storage facilities could pose serious risks.

"We've already discussed that we have hundreds of tons of nuclear fuel at the Bushehr NPP. The Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant has six 1,000-ton units. There are thousands of tons of fuel there; according to conservative estimates, approximately 2,600 tons are located directly on the plant grounds. And, of course, if there were a deliberate or accidental fall into this area, especially into the spent nuclear fuel storage facility, risks would arise on a regional scale," he said.

"These are enormous radiation risks that are increasing day by day," Likhachev emphasised, adding that discussions with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) are scheduled for July but may need to take place sooner due to the situation.

He also called on European countries to support de-escalation efforts, warning that conditions around the plant were approaching a “point of no return.”

By Sabina Mammadli