Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant temporarily lost power overnight, IAEA says

Dec 6 (Reuters) – Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant temporarily lost all off-site power overnight, the International Atomic Energy Agency said on Saturday, citing its Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi.

The nuclear plant, Europe’s largest, has been under Russian control since March 2022, when Russian forces overran much of southeastern Ukraine. It is not currently producing electricity but relies on external power to keep the nuclear material cool and avoid a meltdown.

The plant was reconnected to a 330-kilovolt (kV) power line after a half-hour outage, the IAEA said. 

A 750 kV line that was also disconnected earlier was back in operation, the Russian-installed management of the plant said later on Saturday, and stable power supply had been restored.

Radiation levels remained normal, the management said.

Widespread military activities overnight affected Ukraine’s electricity grid and prompted operating nuclear power plants (NPPs) to reduce output, the IAEA added.

(Reporting by Gnaneshwar Rajan and Yazhini M V in Bengaluru; Editing by Aidan Lewis and Bernadette Baum)

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