Energoatom announced that the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant is in a critical condition
The Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant is facing a critical situation regarding nuclear and radiation safety. On September 6, Energoatom warned that the prolonged operation of backup diesel generators increases the risk of failure of equipment necessary for the plant’s safe operation.
According to the company’s assessment, the current state of Europe’s largest nuclear power plant indicates a systemic violation of basic nuclear safety principles.
The Zaporizhzhia NPP lost its external power supply on August 20. This marked the 27th complete power outage at the plant since the start of the full-scale Russian invasion. After losing external power, the ZNPP’s critical systems had to be switched to backup diesel generators.
For more than two weeks now, the emergency generators have effectively been serving as the plant’s primary source of electricity, even though they are not designed for such prolonged operation.
Energoatom warned that prolonged use of backup systems increases the risk of equipment failure due to a common cause. Such a scenario is among the most dangerous threats to nuclear safety.
“Constant cyclic startups and load switching significantly increase the likelihood of a failure in the startup automation system,” the company stated.
Currently, all power units at the Zaporizhzhia NPP are in a “cold shutdown” state. However, even under these conditions, the plant requires an uninterrupted power supply to operate the systems necessary to ensure nuclear safety.
In particular, electricity is needed to monitor spent nuclear fuel storage pools and other critically important operational parameters.
Energoatom emphasizes that each subsequent power outage further deteriorates the technical condition of the equipment. As early as August 13, the company reported that, as of that date, the Zaporizhzhia NPP had experienced 26 blackouts since the start of the full-scale war, 14 of which occurred during the first eight months of 2026 alone. Of particular concern was the condition of the diesel generator sets due to their accelerated wear and tear.
At the same time, the critical state of nuclear safety does not mean that a radiation accident has already occurred at the plant. According to the latest data released by Energoatom, as of September 4, the background radiation levels at the ZNPP industrial site and the surrounding area remained within the ranges typical for normal operation of power units during the pre-war period.
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