By KYIV. Nov 15 (Interfax-Ukraine) – At the request of Ukraine, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) will send nuclear safety and security missions to three operating nuclear power plants (NPPs) in Ukraine in the coming weeks – the Pivdennoukrainska, Khmelnytsky and Rivne nuclear power plants, as well as to the Chornobyl zone, its head Rafael Grossi said.
"Immediately after I received this latest request from Ukraine, we developed concrete proposals and began preparing the technical and logistical details and we are now ready to deploy these new missions soon," Grossi said, quoted in the IAEA update on Ukraine on its website late on Monday.
Grossi said that while the world is focused on the unstable nuclear security situation at the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant, the IAEA should not forget about other nuclear facilities located in the country "which is at war."
Grossi noted that tentatively each mission would last about a week, but more could follow as needed.
At the ZNPP, occupied by Russian invaders since March 4, the six reactors are continuing to receive the off-site electricity they need for cooling and other essential nuclear safety and security functions from the one remaining operating 750 kilovolt (kV) external power line.
Four of the plant’s reactors remain in cold shutdown, while the two others are in hot shutdown to provide steam for the plant and also heating for people living in Enerhodar, many of them workers at the plant and their families.
At the same time, the IAEA drew attention to the contradictions between the Ukrainian and Russian personnel who were at the plant after its occupation.
Last week, Ukrainian operating staff proposed to start operating reactor unit 6 at low power to provide more steam, while still not producing electricity. The Ukrainian regulator subsequently approved the request. However, the Russian operating organisation did not give its permission on the grounds of the site’s unreliable connections to the power grid and therefore this unit remains in hot shutdown.
"The Ukrainian staff are carrying out their vital tasks under constant pressure. This can have a negative impact on nuclear safety and security and increase the risk of a nuclear accident, and it must stop. Exacerbating the situation, they are now also faced with conflicting instructions on how to run the plant," Grossi said.
At the same time, the agency also pointed out another factor of contradictions: according to the IAEA, the Russian contractor carried out modifications of the physical protection system of the plant’s dry spent fuel storage facility, which were not authorized by the competent Ukrainian authority.
However, the IAEA team visited the dry spent fuel storage facility and saw that IAEA safeguards seals on the spent fuel casks were in place, and no immediate safeguards issues were identified.
Separately, a convoy of 24 trucks from Zaporizhia town arrived at the plant on Sunday, November 13, with supplies and spare parts, including chemical agents, electrical components, and electric heaters for the winter.
In general, the IAEA drew attention to the fact that recently it had been relatively calm in the Zaporizhia NPP area, the shelling on the territory of the plant and in the industrial zone near the city of Enerhodar had decreased, however, they admitted that the situation could change at any moment and "suddenly take a new dangerous turn."
"This is not the time to relax. I’m continuing my determined efforts to agree and implement a nuclear safety and security protection zone around the plant as soon as possible. It remains urgently needed," Director General Grossi said.
