An IAEA team is monitoring mine-clearing work being carried out to enable urgent repairs to the last remaining main power line of the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP), following days of intense military activity that continues to endanger nuclear safety and security. The team’s presence is necessary to strengthen and help maintain the IAEA-brokered ceasefire that took effect on Friday, IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi informed the IAEA Board of Governors this week.

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The Russian Federation and Ukraine agreed to a temporary localized ceasefire – the sixth such arrangement facilitated by the IAEA since late last year – allowing repair work to begin in the coming days on the ZNPP’s 750 kV Dniprovska power line - which has been disconnected since 24 March 2026 – after demining of the area. The plant is currently relying on a single off-site power line, the 330 kV backup Ferosplavna-1 line.

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The IAEA team is observing demining activities as part of a new phase of the negotiated arrangements for the ceasefire following an incident in which some Russian military personnel were reportedly injured during the demining phase on Friday, Director General Grossi told the Board.

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The repairs, which are expected to begin in the coming days, are especially urgent given the fragile state of the ZNPP’s sole remaining external backup power line. Since the disconnection of the Dniprovska line in March, the Ferosplavna-1 line has been disconnected six times, leaving the plant entirely reliant on emergency diesel generators for the electricity it needs to cool its six reactors and avoid a nuclear accident. In the past two weeks alone, the ZNPP lost all off-site power three times, most recently on 5 June when the plant suffered its 18th offsite power outage since the war began. The outage lasted 15 hours, making it one of its longest losses of off-site power since the war began. 

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Drone strike at the ZNPP

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Over the past two weeks, the IAEA team at the ZNPP was informed of continued military activity near the site, including affecting nearby substations, transport for plant staff and in the city of Enerhodar where most plant staff live and where electricity access remained sporadic.

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On 30 May, the team was informed of a drone strike on the turbine hall of Unit 6 and, during walkdowns over the following days, it observed a hole in the wall and localized damage to the metal cladding of an empty pipe a few metres away. The plant said it plans to seal the hole while specialists continue to assess the affected area.

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Director General Grossi said “attacking nuclear sites is like playing with fire”. 

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“This is the first time since April 2024 that military activity has directly impacted the ZNPP site,” he added. “I once again call for maximum military restraint near nuclear facilities during the war.”

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Drone strike at Chornobyl

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In an escalation of military activities at the Chornobyl site, on Sunday a drone struck the centralised spent fuel storage facility located in the surrounding exclusion zone, just a few hundred metres from where spent fuel is stored in casks. Updating the Board on Monday, Director General Grossi said the attack caused significant structural damage to part of the fuel reception building, including the IAEA safeguards office, but that radiation levels at the facility remained normal. 

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“Attacking a facility with large amounts of nuclear material is extremely dangerous. It must not happen,” he added.  

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It is unclear when the facility will be able to start receiving spent fuel from Ukraine’s operating nuclear power plants (NPPs) again.

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Military activity

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Military activity was also reported by IAEA teams at Ukraine’s three operating NPPs - Khmelnytskyy, Rivne and South Ukraine – and the Chornobyl site. 

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IAEA teams also reported over the past two weeks the sites detected over 100 drones within their monitoring areas – some as close as 2 km – and, at the Rivne NPP, the IAEA team was forced to shelter on site on the morning of 3 June, while at the Chornobyl site, the IAEA team heard gunfire multiple times in response to the detection of drones.

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“I remind the parties in this conflict of the need to adhere to the Five Concrete Principles to help ensure nuclear safety and security at ZNPP and to the Seven Indispensable Pillars to which I have already referred.” Director General Grossi said. 

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Assistance programme 

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Over the past week, the Agency has continued to deliver equipment to Ukraine as part of its comprehensive programme of assistance. 

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Dosimeters with support software and accessories and silicone protective face masks were delivered to the Kharkiv Institute of Physics and Technology. A Surface Contamination Monitor was delivered to the National Research Center for Radiation Medicine (NRCRM) as part of the medical assistance programme. 

 

The deliveries were made possible with funds from the European Union, Japan and the United Kingdom. 

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Text Courtesy, IAEA