Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi addressed world leaders gathered at the United Nations this week and yet, even as he informed them about the ceaseless work of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to help Ukraine avert a nuclear accident during the military conflict, the Agency teams stationed at the country's nuclear power plants (NPPs) continued to report about drones and other military activities nearby.
Ahead of this year's United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), Director General Grossi spoke at the Summit of the Future about the IAEA's mission to foster peace and development around the world, including by assisting Ukraine in ensuring nuclear safety and security during a large-scale conflict that is now well into its third year.
Noting that Ukraine used to generate more than half its electricity from nuclear power before the conflict began in February 2022, he said: "From the first months of the war, the IAEA has focused on assisting Ukraine in preventing a radiological or nuclear accident, which could have serious transborder consequences."
The IAEA has since established support and assistance missions at all of Ukraine's nuclear power plants, including the Zaporizhzhya NPP located on the frontline, as well as the Chornobyl site.
"Following months of negotiations and consultations, on 30 May 2023 at the UN Security Council I outlined five concrete principles to help ensure nuclear safety and security at Ukraine's Zaporizhzhya NPP. These principles received strong support from the Members of the Council," Director General Grossi said in Monday's statement to the Summit.
The persistent dangers to nuclear safety and security in Ukraine were also a key topic during the Director General's many meetings with government leaders and other senior officials in New York this week, including with new Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, who voiced strong support for the IAEA's work in the country.
Reports from the IAEA's teams in Ukraine made clear that the nuclear safety and security situation remained precarious over the past week, with one team seeking shelter due to the presence of drones in the area, another team hearing anti-aircraft fire and a large explosion during an air raid alarm, and a third team visiting the site of an alleged drone attack.
At the ZNPP, the IAEA team heard explosions throughout the week, including several blasts close to the site, although no damage to the plant was reported.
Last Saturday, the ZNPP informed the team of an alleged drone strike that occurred on Friday afternoon on a 35/6 kilovolt (kV) substation around 300 metres away from the plant. This substation provides electricity to non-safety related facilities at the ZNPP, including a grid-water pumping station, a water management plant, and external warehouses.
Visiting the affected site the day following the alleged attack, the IAEA team observed some impact on one of the substation's two transformers. Remains of batteries and metal pieces of the alleged drone were also observed in the area. The plant said repairs are still ongoing.
Over the past week, the IAEA team has continued to conduct walkdowns across the ZNPP site, discussing maintenance and other activities important for nuclear safety and security of the plant. However, yesterday the ZNPP informed the team that it was not allowed to conduct its planned walkdown of the external warehouses and diesel fuel storage facility due to the risk from military activities.
Ensuring adequate maintenance remains challenging during the conflict. The IAEA team was informed about the five categories of maintenance the ZNPP is implementing to ensure the reliability of the emergency diesel generators (EDGs) and about the scheduling of the maintenance frequency. The ZNPP said category 1 and 2 maintenance, the lowest categories, involving monthly visual inspections and annual maintenance, is ongoing during 2024. More advanced maintenance is planned for some EDGs in the coming years. The team was also informed on the progress of maintenance activities performed on reactor unit 6 during recent months.
Among other activities, the IAEA team visited the turbine halls of reactor units 3 and 4 and were again not allowed to access the western parts of the buildings. On Monday, the IAEA team conducted a walkdown inside the unit 5 reactor building, observing the monthly changeover between cooling pumps of the spent fuel pool as well as some of the main reactor components and safety systems rooms.
The IAEA teams present at the Khmelnytskyy, Rivne and South Ukraine NPPs and the Chornobyl site reported that nuclear safety and security is being maintained despite the effects of the ongoing conflict, including air raid alarms on several days over the past week.
Over the past weekend, unit 2 at the South Ukraine NPP (SUNPP) was transferred to a cold shutdown state to repair the electrical motor of one of its main cooling pumps, which was damaged as a result of military attacks on the electrical grid outside the plant on 26 August. Following completion of the repairs, the unit returned to operation on Wednesday, and is increasing power. The plant's connection to two off-site power lines that were disconnected following last month's attacks was restored.
On the night of 18 September, the IAEA team at the SUNPP was required to shelter due to the reported presence of drones in the vicinity. The IAEA was subsequently informed by the plant that 22 drones flew through the area, including one over the plant, while others were observed approximately 1.5 kilometers from the plant. A further 15 drones were recorded by the SUNPP in the area near the site the following night. On the nights of 20 and 21 September, the IAEA was informed by the State Nuclear Regulatory Inspectorate of Ukraine (SNRIU) that two and eight drones, respectively, flew through the area.
The IAEA team at the Khmelnytskyy NPP (KhNPP) reported an air raid alarm early in the morning of 22 September, during which the team heard anti-aircraft fire and a large explosion. The team was informed that a drone was detected about 3.4 kilometers from the KhNPP. In the early hours of this morning, the IAEA team was required to shelter multiple times at the site due to several air raid alarms.
The IAEA teams at the SUNPP and at the KhNPP rotated earlier this week.
Elsewhere in Ukraine, SNRIU informed the IAEA that the premises of its Eastern Nuclear and Radiation Safety Inspection regional unit, located in the north-eastern city of Kharkiv, was damaged as a result of military activities. There were no casualties.
The IAEA continued this week to deliver on its comprehensive programme of assistance to help Ukraine maintain nuclear safety and security. Two quadcopter drones for performing spatial radiometric surveys were delivered to the Ukrainian Hydrometeorological Centre of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine aimed at enhancing their radiation monitoring capability. The delivery was supported by a contribution from Switzerland.
