The Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine has been reconnected to the national electricity grid after engineers repaired one of the four main external power lines damaged during the Russian invasion of the country, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said on Saturday.
The nuclear facility’s “power status has improved over the past week,” but the general situation at the plant “remains precarious,” IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi said in a statement. “While there has been no recent shelling at or near the ZNPP, it continues to occur in the wider area,” he said.
The Zaporizhzhia facility, Europe’s largest nuclear power plant, has not been providing electricity since September 5, the agency said.
The U.N. nuclear watchdog has had monitors at the site since late August, following a visit by a team of IAEA experts. Russia seized the facility in March, but it has continued to be operated by Ukrainian staff.
The IAEA on Monday set out plans for a security protection zone around plant. The agency would ensure that the security perimeter is respected, Grossi said. The proposal is being discussed with Ukraine and Russia, Grossi said, adding that he has “seen signs that they are interested in this agreement.”
Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis earlier this week said the international community must secure the Zaporizhzhia plant by completely expelling Russian forces from the area.
