Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant relying on generators again after losing external power supply

MOSCOW: The Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in southeastern Ukraine has lost its external electricity supply and is again using backup generators for reactor cooling, the plant’s management and the UN’s nuclear watchdog said on Sunday.

Zaporizhzhia, which produces no electricity but needs power supplied by two external links to keep nuclear fuel cool, lost its off-site electricity supply after the Ferosplavna power line disconnected, the International Atomic Energy Agency said. “The cause and location of the latest disconnection are not yet known,” the IAEA said in an X post, adding that the plant currently has sufficient fuel reserves to operate a limited number of emergency diesel generators for about two weeks. The IAEA said on October 23 that the main Dniprovska power line remained unavailable.