This power plant was responsible for the worst nuclear accident in history, the 1986 Chernobyl disaster. Russian troops currently hold the plant.
Herman Halushchenko, Energy Minister, stated that the connection was restored by “heroes” at the national power grid company. This power is used to power pumps that cool spent nuclear fuel to prevent radiation from leaking.
Ukraine claimed Wednesday that the power was cut at the site, and that enough diesel fuel was available to run generators on-site for 48 hours. Concerns were dismissed by the International Atomic Energy Agency, which said that there was no risk of fuel pools overheating without electricity.
The International Atomic Energy Agency, (IAEA), stated Sunday that it was informed that the power supply line had been restored at 6:38 p.m. local. According to the IAEA, the plant will be connected to Ukraine’s electricity grid Monday morning.
“This is a good development since the Chornobyl NPP had to rely upon emergency diesel generators for many days now,” IAEA Director-General Rafael Mariano Grossi stated in a statement. “I remain concerned about safety and security at Chornobyl, and other nuclear facilities in Ukraine.
The IAEA stated that part of the problem is the health of more than 200 employees at Chernobyl, who were not allowed to leave the plant for almost three weeks.
After launching an invasion on February 24, Russian forces quickly took control of the Chernobyl facility. According to Ukrainian officials, the plant operators responsible for ensuring safe operations at Chernobyl’s decommissioned facility tried to continue their work under orders from Russian troops. They were not allowed to leave the compound.
Sunday’s statement by the agency stated that Ukrainian officials told it that employees were no longer repairing or maintaining safety-related equipment, partly because they had been working non-stop for almost three weeks.
Ukraine claimed Friday that Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered “the preparation for a terrorist attack on the Chernobyl facility.” The Ministry of Defense of Ukraine stated that Russian forces at the plant had “refused access to the station for Ukrainian repair personnel.” It claimed that among the engineers from Belarus were Russian “saboteurs” who pretended to be nuclear scientists and came “to organise a terrorist attack.”