March 4
Russia has been continuously attacking places in Ukraine. It has taken over Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant.
The attacks to take control of these nuclear sites have raised worldwide concern.
Ukraine has 15 nuclear power units (13.8 GW) at four nuclear power plants: Rivne, Khmelnitskiy, South Ukraine and Zaporizhzhia, the largest one in Europe.
So far the Russian troops have taken over the closed nuclear power plant at Chernobyl and the active nuclear power plant Zaporizhzhia.
As said, the fighting caused a fire at the nuclear site and later on it doused by the Ukrainian authorities.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said the fire had not affected essential equipment and that Ukraine’s nuclear regulator reported no change in radiation levels.
In a tweet, the IAEA said, “Ukraine informed IAEA that Russian forces took control of the site of Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant; says safety systems of the plant’s six reactors had not been affected and there has been no release of radioactive material. Two people reported injured.”
Ukraine’s nuclear power plants are operated by NNEGC Energoatom, the country’s nuclear power utility.
Ukraine had then informed the IAEA that Russian forces had taken control of all facilities of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. Also on the same day control levels of gamma radiation dose rates in Chernobyl were exceeded.
Ukraine is dependent on nuclear energy and it has 15 reactors generating about half of its electricity.
In Ukraine, nuclear energy development started in 1970 with the construction of the Chernobyl power plant, the first unit being commissioned in 1977. Unit 4 came online in 1983 and was destroyed in 1986.
