Europe's Largest Nuclear Plant Runs on Emergency Power Amid Prolonged Outage

The Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine, Europe's largest facility with six reactors, has been without external electricity for over a week, relying on emergency diesel generators to maintain cooling for reactors and spent fuel pools. This prolonged outage, the longest since Russia seized the plant in 2022, poses significant safety risks as diesel fuel reserves are limited and continuous power is essential to prevent overheating and potential nuclear accidents. The International Atomic Energy Agency's Director General Rafael Grossi and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy have stressed the critical nature of restoring external power and warned against prolonged reliance on backup systems, which is unsustainable and heightens the risk of a catastrophic event. Both sides blame each other for the power disruption, with Ukraine accusing Russian shelling of sabotaging power lines and Russia blaming Ukrainian attacks for preventing repairs. Despite stable radiation levels reported by Russian management, international experts and Ukrainian officials emphasize that the situation is critical, with the plant's safety under considerable strain amid ongoing conflict. The plant's occupation by Russian forces and attempts to integrate it into Russia's power grid further complicate efforts to resolve the crisis, raising alarms about the potential consequences of a nuclear accident that could affect the entire continent.