Explosions destroyed energy infrastructure in the Ukrainian city of Energodar, home to staff at the Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, posing a growing threat to the plant, the UN nuclear watchdog said on Friday, as cited by Reuters.

Zaporizhzhia NPP, controlled by the RussiansPhoto: Kostyantyn Mikhalchevsky / Sputnik / Profimedia

Power lines outside the plant, vital safeguards against a potential nuclear disaster, had already been cut, and the bombing of Energodar had caused a prolonged blackout.

That prompted Ukraine to say it may have to shut down the last operating reactor supplying electricity to Zaporizhzhia, including the plant’s nuclear fuel cooling systems.

“This is an unstable situation and it is becoming more and more dangerous. The energy supplier arrived in the dark. The plant no longer has an external energy source. And we saw that as soon as the infrastructure was repaired, it was damaged again,” the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Rafael Grossi, said in a statement.

This is absolutely unacceptable. It cannot remain like this

Ukraine and Russia have blamed each other for the bombing near Zaporizhzhia in southern Ukraine and the perimeter of Europe’s largest nuclear power plant, which has six reactors.

“This is absolutely unacceptable. It cannot remain like this,” Grossi said.

“Therefore, I strongly call for an immediate cessation of all shelling in the entire area. Only this will ensure the safety of the service personnel and allow stable restoration of power supply to Energodar and the station.”

Grossi this week called for the creation of a “nuclear safety and security zone” around Zaporizhzhia, repeating his call on Friday.

The operator of the Zaporozhye plant is not confident that off-site power can be restored, prompting it to consider shutting down the last operating reactor, Grossi said.

“Then the entire plant will be completely dependent on emergency diesel generators for vital nuclear safety and security functions. And as a result, the operator will not be able to restart the reactors if the external power supply is not reliably restored,” he added.