Situation at ZNPP critical – Zelensky

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated this in his nightly video address, Ukrinform reports.

"This is already the seventh day – and, by the way, this has never happened before – that the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant has been in an emergency situation. The situation is critical. Because of Russian shelling, the plant has been disconnected from power, from the electricity grid. It is being supplied by diesel generators. This is extraordinary. Neither the generators nor the plant are designed for this, and they have never operated in such a mode for this long. And we already have information that one of the generators has failed," he said.

According to him, Russian shelling is preventing repairs to the power lines serving the plant.

Zelensky stressed that the blackout at the Zaporizhzhia NPP is a threat to everyone.

He added that, in response to the situation, he held a meeting with the military and representatives of the Ministry of Energy, and instructed the government – the Ministry of Energy and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs – to draw the world's attention to the issue.

As reported, the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia NPP has been disconnected from Ukraine's power grid for seven days, creating nuclear and radiation safety risks.

On September 23, the plant lost its last external power line. A backup line had already been cut by Russian forces in May, and since then they have refused to provide security guarantees for Ukrenergo repair crews to carry out restoration.

Energoatom has stated that the external power line to the ZNPP on Ukraine-controlled territory remains intact, and accused Russia of deliberately refusing to reconnect the plant to the power supply while continuing a large-scale disinformation campaign against Ukraine.