Temporary Truce Agreed at Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Plant for Power Repairs

Russia and Ukraine have agreed to a local ceasefire near the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, giving technicians a chance to repair the electricity infrastructure keeping the facility safe.

The plant, which remains under Russian control, has been without external power since August 20. The International Atomic Energy Agency brokered the truce around an electricity line after military activity north of the Dnieper River disrupted the connection. Ukrainian technicians were expected to begin restoring the supply on Saturday, September 5.

Without the external grid, the plant has relied on diesel generators to cool its six reactors and the pools containing spent nuclear fuel. The generators must continue operating even though the reactors are technically shut down, because the reactor cores and used fuel still produce residual heat.

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The plant is running out of diesel reserves and faces a possible total power outage within days, unless external power is restored or more fuel reserves can be transported to the site, located in an active war zone.

The IAEA warned that fuel reserves were falling and that the plant could face a total loss of power within days. It said the risk would remain unless the external supply was restored or additional diesel could be delivered to the site, which lies in an active war zone.

IAEA Director-General Rafael Grossi said both sides had cooperated constructively with the agency over nuclear safety and security. He described the arrangement as the seventh truce the IAEA had helped broker since the war began, as part of efforts to prevent a nuclear accident during the conflict. The plant has experienced several power cuts and explosions since the fighting began and no longer generates electricity.

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Both sides cooperated constructively with the IAEA for the purpose of nuclear safety and security.