On July 3 from 12:00 to 13:30 (GMT+3), experts from the Nuclear Project of the Environmental Organization Bellona will conduct an online presentation of our new report on the potential restart of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP), which is under Russian control. Registration for the event can be done via the link. 

The ZNPP, the largest nuclear power plant in Europe with six nuclear reactors, was seized in March 2022 at the beginning of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Russian troops are stationed on its territory, and the plant’s staff is essentially held hostage. Since then, the ZNPP has been repeatedly shelled. 

For more than a year and a half, all the plant’s reactors have been shut down and are currently in a “cold shutdown” state, one of the safest modes given the current circumstances of war. Recently, however, Russian officials and even the head of the IAEA have increasingly discussed the possibility of restarting the plant. Switching even one reactor to electricity generation mode at the plant, which is near the front line, would significantly increase the risk of nuclear and radiation incidents and exacerbate their potential consequences. 

In the new document, Bellona has analyzed the current state of the plant and assessed the technical feasibility of its restart, as well as the diplomatic situation surrounding the ZNPP. The analysis shows that technically, Rosatom could attempt to restart at least one unit of the plant by the end of 2024. 

The report’s conclusions and details will be shared by its authors – Bellona  Nuclear Project experts Dmitry Gorchakov and Alexander Nikitin. After their presentations, there will be a Q&A session where all participants can take part. 

Registering for the presentation will also give you access to receive the report a few days before the event and a notification of the start of the broadcast with a link to YouTube. If your question is not answered during the session, you will receive a written response later, so please register in advance and watch for emails from Bellona.