Overview
- IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi called the situation at Ukraine’s nuclear facilities “extremely challenging” and said the agency will urgently inspect the struck centralized spent fuel reception building near Chornobyl.
- The reception building at the Centralized Spent Nuclear Fuel Storage Facility was partially destroyed by a drone strike and spent fuel is stored in casks only a few hundred metres away, raising concern about nearby radioactive material.
- The Russian‑occupied Zaporizhzhia plant has been operating for months on one backup offsite power line and recently suffered another long external outage that required emergency diesel generators to cool its six shut‑down reactors.
- IAEA teams negotiated temporary local ceasefires to allow repairs to the Dniprovska line and the plant’s director has warned the site is unusually exposed to fighting while offering to share operational lessons with other plants.
- Civilians around Energodar have suffered damage and injuries in recent attacks and the continuing power fragility and strikes increase the risk of a serious radiological incident, so inspectors’ findings and repairs will be key to preventing escalation.