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Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Plant Faces 10th Blackout Since Russian Occupation
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![Photo of Roman Kohanets]( "Photo of Roman Kohanets")
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Ukraine’s Energy Ministry reported on September 23 that the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) lost its sole external power line at 16:56 local time, forcing a switch to emergency diesel generators—marking the tenth full blackout at the site since Russia seized it in 2022.
“At 16:56, the only power line through which Zaporizhzhia NPP received power from the Ukrainian energy system was disconnected. ZNPP switched to powering its in-house needs from diesel generators. This is a significant violation of normal plant operation,” the ministry’s statement said.
The announcement added that repeated outages stem from Russian attacks on energy infrastructure and urged international pressure for the site’s demilitarization and return to Ukrainian control.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has repeatedly warned that ZNPP’s external power remains precarious, noting in recent updates that the plant has been operating for months on a single off-site line and that shelling near the facility continues to pose “constant dangers to nuclear safety and security.”
This September the IAEA reported its team at the plant heard shelling and saw black smoke from multiple nearby locations; artillery impacts were recorded about 400 meters from the off-site diesel fuel storage area.
The latest blackout underscores concerns raised at the IAEA’s General Conference, where member states adopted a resolution calling for Russia’s immediate withdrawal from the facility and its return to Ukrainian control.
Ukraine’s authorities say only that step will restore nuclear safety at Europe’s largest nuclear power plant, whose six reactors are in cold shutdown but still require reliable power to cool reactor cores and spent fuel pools.
Earlier, it was reported that a Russian strike on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure triggered a complete blackout at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant after a key transmission line was cut, forcing reliance on backup power for safety systems.
