Category: Press Release

Source: International Atomic Energy Agency – IAEA

An International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) team of experts said the operator of the Borssele Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) in the Kingdom of the Netherlands demonstrates a commitment to its operational safety. The team encouraged the plant to continue its operational safety improvement initiatives.

The Operational Safety Review Team (OSART) mission, conducted at the request of the Netherlands, took place from 19 to 23 May. This was a follow-up mission to a 2023 OSART peer review mission to Borssele NPP, which also found the plant to be committed to ensuring operational safety and reliability.

OSART missions independently assess safety performance against IAEA safety standards. The aim is to advance operational safety by proposing recommendations and, where appropriate, suggestions for improvement.

Borssele NPP is located on the country’s coast – roughly 165 kilometres south of Amsterdam. Operated by Elektriciteits-Produktiemaatschappij Zuid-Nederland (EPZ) with a net electrical output of 482 MW(e), the plant is a single unit pressurized water reactor. Of the total electricity generation in the country, Borssele NPP contributes 3.2% and was put into commercial operation in 1973. The plant had previously received approval to extend the operational period to 2033, and the plant’s intention – as requested by the Dutch government – is to extend the operation until 2054.

The mission was conducted by a four-person team consisting of experts from Slovakia and Sweden and two IAEA staff members. The team held discussions with staff from the Borssele NPP and conducted site walkdowns during the review. 

“The plant has already implemented many actions to enhance worker engagement in safety-related initiatives to achieve excellence in operational performance,” said team leader Yury Martynenko, Senior Nuclear Safety Officer at the IAEA. “We recognize the plant’s defined new actions to continue the way towards a culture of continuous improvement.”

The team observed that several findings from the 2023 mission were fully addressed and resolved, including:

• The plant leadership enhanced the engagement of workers through initiatives to achieve excellence in operational performance.
• The plant promoted the use of operator-supportive aids to prevent the use of non-authorized operating material.
• The plant improved arrangements to timely address improper behaviours and resolve radiological field deficiencies to ensure these are addressed in a timely manner.

The team noted areas where satisfactory progress was made, but further efforts are required by the plant to fully implement some actions drawn up after the 2023 mission, including:

• Strengthening its programmes for system health monitoring and obsolescence to minimize the potential risk of degradation of plant systems and components;
• Improving the plant’s provisions for protective actions in case of an emergency to ensure timely and efficient emergency response; and,
• Strengthening the radiation protection practices for contamination control, dose planning and the control of radioactive sources to ensure that the requirements of the radiation protection programme are fully met.

“I am very pleased with the result and especially the way in which this has been achieved with a lot of engagement of our employees across the whole organization,” said Carlo Wolters, Chief Executive Officer of EPZ. “EPZ is very committed to continue the improvement journey to achieve the highest level of excellence in safe and reliable operations of the power plant.”

The OSART team provided a draft report of the mission to the plant management. They will have the opportunity to make factual comments on the draft. These comments will be reviewed by the IAEA, and the final report will be submitted to the Netherlands within three months.

Background

General information about OSART missions can be found on the IAEA website. An OSART mission is designed as a review of programmes and activities essential to operational safety. It is not a regulatory inspection, nor is it a design review or a substitute for an exhaustive assessment of the plant’s overall safety status.

Follow-up missions are standard components of the OSART programme and are typically conducted within two years of the initial mission.

The IAEA Safety Standards provide a robust framework of fundamental principles, requirements, and guidance to ensure safety. They reflect an international consensus and serve as a global reference for protecting people and the environment from the harmful effects of ionizing radiation.

Source: International Atomic Energy Agency – IAEA

An International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) team of experts yesterday completed a review of long term operational safety of the Krško Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) in Slovenia.

The Safety Aspects of Long Term Operation (SALTO) review mission was requested by the plant’s operator, Nuklearna Elektrarna Krško (NEK). Krško NPP started commercial operation in 1983. It is the only reactor in Slovenia and is co-owned with neighbouring Croatia. Located approximately 70 kilometers east of Slovenia’s capital Ljubljana, and 40 kilometres north-west of Croatia’s capital Zagreb, Krško NPP is equipped with one pressurized-water reactor and has a net electrical output of 700 Megawatt electric (MW(e)). In 2023, the operating license of the NPP was extended from initially 40 years to 60 years until 2043.

During the ten-day mission that ended on 22 May, the team reviewed the plant’s preparedness, organization and programmes for safe long term operation, which built upon an initial IAEA pre-SALTO mission held at the plant in 2021. The mission was conducted by a twelve-person team consisting of experts from Canada, the Czech Republic, France, Hungary, three IAEA staff members and four observers from France, Hungary, Sweden, and the Nuclear Energy Agency. During the review, the SALTO team held in-depth discussions with staff from the Krško NPP and conducted several site walkdowns.    

The team noted the progress in measures taken by the operator to ensure safe LTO. “The professionalism, openness and receptiveness for improvements of plant staff to meet and move beyond the IAEA safety standards is commendable,” said team leader and IAEA Nuclear Safety Officer Martin Marchena who noted that most ageing management and LTO activities were already in alignment with IAEA safety standards. “We encourage the plant to address the review findings and proceed with the implementation of all remaining activities for safe LTO”, he added.

The team identified good performances that will be shared with the nuclear industry globally, including:

• Operating a 360-degree “Virtual Walkdown” application that allows staff to visually evaluate equipment through photos and associated design and maintenance data in support of ageing management activities.
• The comprehensive establishment, documentation and revalidation of the equipment qualification programme for LTO, which ensures that components can perform their intended safety functions under all conditions.
• Ageing management activities for the reactor pressure vessel are well-established and form a well-structured and comprehensive programme.

The team also provided suggestions to further improve safe LTO, for example:

• The plant should consider further developing a systematic approach for the oversight of the LTO programme.
• The plant should consider adequately documenting the methodology and results used for scope setting (the identification of relevant systems, structures and components) for ageing management.
• The plant should consider completing and fully documenting ageing management of electrical and instrumentation and control systems, structures and components (I&C SSCs).

The plant management expressed a determination to maintain the level of preparedness for safe LTO and further cooperate with the IAEA in this field.

“We appreciate the IAEA’s support to our plant in ageing management and preparation for safe LTO,” said Gorazd Pfeifer, President of the Krško management Board.  “It is very important for us to get an external view on our business. The competencies and experience of the IAEA team enable us to effectively identify areas for improvement.  The results of this mission will help us to improve our activities for safe LTO and to further align them with IAEA safety standards.”

The team provided a draft report to the plant management and to the Slovenian Nuclear Safety Administration (SNSA), the country’s nuclear regulatory authority, at the end of the mission. The plant management and SNSA will have an opportunity to make factual comments on the draft. A final report will be submitted to the plant management, SNSA and the Slovenian Government within three months.

Background

General information about SALTO missions can be found on the IAEA Website. A SALTO peer review is a comprehensive safety review addressing strategy and key elements for the safe long term operation of nuclear power plants. They complement OSART missions, which are designed as a review of programmes and activities essential to operational safety. Neither SALTO nor OSART reviews are regulatory inspections, nor are they design reviews or substitutes for an exhaustive assessment of a plant’s overall safety status.

LTO of nuclear power plants is defined as operation beyond an established time frame determined by the license term, the original plant design, relevant standards, or national regulations. As stated in IAEA safety standards, to maintain a plant’s fitness for service, consideration should be given to life limiting processes and features of systems, structures, and components (SSC), as well as to reasonably practicable safety upgrades to enhance the safety of the plant to a level approaching that of modern plants.

Source: International Atomic Energy Agency – IAEA

The IAEA team based at Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) heard bursts of gunfire this morning, coinciding with a purported drone attack on the site’s training centre, Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi said.

It was the third time this year that the training centre, located just outside the site perimeter, was reportedly targeted by such an unmanned aerial vehicle.

The ZNPP told the IAEA team that the drone hit the roof of the training centre, without causing any casualties or major damage. It was not immediately known whether the drone had directly struck the building or whether it crashed on the structure after being shot down, the ZNPP said.

The IAEA staff members heard the gunfire shortly before 10am local time, but it was not clear if this observation was connected to the drone.

The IAEA team requested to visit the training centre, as it was able to do following the previous such incident that occurred in April. However, on this occasion permission has not yet been granted.

“These reported drone incidents are very concerning, as they could pose a direct threat to nuclear safety and security. To put it simply: there are too many drones flying near nuclear sites, not just the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant. It should stop immediately,” Director General Grossi said.

In February, a drone severely damaged the New Safe Confinement (NSC) at the Chornobyl plant in northern Ukraine, built to prevent any radioactive release from the reactor unit 4 destroyed in the 1986 accident and to protect it from external hazards.

In mid-April, a drone was reportedly shot down and crashed near the ZNPP’s training centre, just over three months after another reported drone attack on the same centre.

Ukraine’s operating nuclear power plants (NPPs) – Khmelnytskyy, Rivne and South Ukraine – also regularly report of drones being detected near the respective sites. Last Friday, the IAEA team at the South Ukraine NPP was informed that drones were observed as close as 2km from the site and the team reported hearing anti-aircraft fire from their hotel. The same night, drones were reported to have been observed transiting through the Chornobyl Exclusion Zone.

Source: International Atomic Energy Agency – IAEA

Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) has for more than a week relied on a single power line to supply the electricity it needs for essential nuclear safety functions, with the military conflict hampering efforts to restore the connection to its back-up line, Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said today.

The ZNPP’s only remaining 330 kilovolt (kV) back-up line was disconnected on 7 May, leaving the plant entirely dependent on the only functioning 750 kV line. The IAEA was informed that the damage occurred in Ukrainian-controlled territory some distance away from the plant and that the Ukrainian grid operator cannot currently carry out repairs due to the active military situation in this area.

The ZNPP’s six reactors have been shut down since mid-2022 but they still require off-site power to cool the fuel and minimise the risk of an accident. Before the conflict, the plant had access to ten power lines, ensuring reliable off-site power.

“Throughout the war, off-site power has been the main Achilles heel for nuclear safety and security at the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant. The situation has, unfortunately, not improved in this regard. Our experts on the ground will continue to monitor developments very closely and we will continue to inform the world about nuclear safety and security at the plant, which remains precarious,” Director General Grossi said.

The IAEA team has continued to hear military activities every day over the past week, with explosions at different distances from the ZNPP and early on Tuesday morning, the team also heard gun fire and what appeared to be the sound of a drone.

As part of their daily activities to monitor and assess nuclear safety and security, the IAEA team observed six of the site’s 20 emergency diesel generators (EDGs). EDGs provide back up support in case a nuclear power plant (NPP) were to lose access to all off-site electricity, something which has happened eight times at the ZNPP during the conflict.

The team observed a loose screw on two of the EDGs, and saw indications that some activities may have recently been conducted on one of them. The ZNPP stated that there had not been any maintenance performed recently but acknowledged that the screws should not have been loose, one of which they said was due to vibrations. The IAEA team plan to observe scheduled testing of one of these EDGs in the coming days.

Mobile diesel boilers that provided heat to the ZNPP and the nearby city of Enerhodar during the cold winter months have now been shut down to perform hydraulic tests on the grid water system, the team also reported.

Director General Grossi said he continued to engage intensively with both sides to organise the next rotation of IAEA experts at the plant, which is already delayed because of the complex and difficult situation on the ground in the area located on the frontline of the conflict.

Planned maintenance and refuelling activities have continued to take place at Ukraine’s three operating NPPs – Khmelnytskyy, Rivne and South Ukraine. One reactor unit at the Rivne NPP has returned to full power generation over the past week, so there are now a total of six reactors operating in Ukraine.

At the three plants and the Chornobyl site, the IAEA teams continued to report several air-raid alarms over the past week. The Agency teams at Rivne, South Ukraine and Chornobyl rotated over the past week, with staff from headquarters in Vienna replacing their colleagues in the field.

Source: International Atomic Energy Agency – IAEA

Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) has once again lost the connection to its only remaining back-up power line, underlining the continued fragility of the electrical grid during the military conflict, Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said today.

The latest disconnection of the 330 kilovolt (kV) power line – which occurred just before noon local time on Wednesday – left the plant entirely dependent on its last functional 750 kV power line for the electricity it needs to cool its reactors and for other essential nuclear safety and security functions. According to Ukraine’s Ministry of Energy, the disconnection occurred as a result of military activities.

“A secure supply of off-site power from the grid for all nuclear sites is one of the seven indispensable pillars of nuclear safety and security that we outlined early in the war. It is obvious that this supply is far from being secure. The vulnerability of the grid remains a deep source of concern for nuclear safety at the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant as well as elsewhere in Ukraine,” Director General Grossi said.

Before the conflict, the ZNPP had access to a total of ten external power lines, both 750 and 330 kV. The site has lost all off-site power eight times during the conflict.

The IAEA team based at the ZNPP continued to hear explosions at distances far away from the site on several days over the past week.

The team has continued to monitor and assess nuclear safety and security at the plant, in recent days conducting a site walkdown, confirming the water levels in the sprinkler ponds, and observing the testing of an emergency diesel generator. The team also visited the nuclear safety related electrical breakers and instrumentation, and control cabinets of units 3 and 4.

Director General Grossi said he was in daily contact with both sides to organize the next rotation of IAEA experts at the ZNPP. The current team, ISAMZ27, has been at the plant for more than two months now. The previous rotation, conducted in early March, was also delayed because of difficult conditions on the ground.

“The IAEA’s continuous presence at the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant, since September 2022, has been of vital importance for our efforts to help prevent a nuclear accident during the war. However, getting our staff to and from the site – located on the frontline – has become more complicated in recent months. In the coming days, I will continue to engage intensively with both sides to find a solution, which is urgently needed. My overarching priorities are the safety of my staff and the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant,” Director General Grossi said.

At the Chornobyl site, investigations to determine the extent of damage sustained by the New Safe Confinement (NSC) arch are ongoing following the drone attack in mid-February.

It took several weeks to completely extinguish the fires caused by the strike. The emergency work resulted in approximately 330 openings in the outer cladding of the NSC arch, each with an average size of 30-50 cm.

According to information provided to the IAEA team at the site, a preliminary assessment of the physical integrity of the large arch-shaped building identified extensive damage, for example to the stainless-steel panels of the outer cladding, insulation materials as well as to a large part of the membrane – located between the layers of insulation materials – that keep out water, moisture and air.

In addition, the IAEA team was informed that the NSC’s main crane system (MCS), which includes the crane north maintenance garage area, was damaged by the drone strike and is currently not operational. The MCS is one of the building’s main systems. The crane maintenance garage area houses several electrical cabinets for various systems, most of which were affected by the drone incident and by the water used to put out the resulting fires.

The NSC’s other systems – providing relevant safety functions such as radiation monitoring, seismic monitoring, decontamination and radioactive waste management, power supply, and fire protection – remain functional, the IAEA team was informed.

While the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems remain functional, they are not in service after the drone incident, the Chornobyl site added.

“We are gradually getting a more complete picture of the severe damage caused by the drone strike. It will take both considerable time and money to repair all of it,” Director General Grossi said.

On a more re-assuring note, there still has been no increase in radiation levels measured at the Chornobyl site, indicating there was no release of radioactive materials as a result of the strike.

At Ukraine’s three operating nuclear power plants (NPPs) – Khmelnytskyy, Rivne and South Ukraine – five out of their total of nine units are currently operating and generating electricity. The four other reactors are in various stages of shutdown for planned maintenance and refueling, of which two are expected to restart soon.

The IAEA teams based at the three operating NPPs and the Chornobyl site have continued to report about air raid alarms on most days over the past week. The team at the Khmelnytskyy NPP had to shelter on the site in the morning of 30 April.

As part of the IAEA’s assistance programme to support nuclear safety and security in Ukraine, the Khmelnytskyy NPP and Energoatom’s Centralized Spent Fuel Storage Facility received radio-communication systems, procured with funding from the European Union. In addition, USIE Izotop – a Ukrainian state enterprise involved in the management of radioactive material intended for medical, industrial and other purposes – received software for dose assessments and related calculations, funded by New Zealand. This brings the total number of deliveries to 135 since the start of the conflict.

Source: International Atomic Energy Agency – IAEA

Ukrainian engineers and construction workers are carrying out temporary repairs of the Chornobyl site’s New Safe Confinement (NSC) that was severely damaged in a drone attack earlier this year, Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said today.

The drone strike on 14 February pierced a big hole through the roof of the large confinement structure built to prevent any radioactive release from the reactor destroyed in the 1986 accident and protect it from external hazards. It took several weeks to completely extinguish the fires and smouldering caused by this strike.

The IAEA team based at the Chornobyl plant in northern Ukraine visited the NSC in recent days to discuss ongoing efforts by the site to assess the building’s structural integrity following the attack almost three months ago and to observe repairs of the inner and outer cladding to prevent water ingress.

“Immediately after the drone strike Ukrainian emergency personnel rushed to contain and eventually put out the fires. The site is now focusing its efforts on assessing the full extent of the damage while also carrying out short-term repairs. It is clear that the confinement structure – constructed at huge expense and with major international support – suffered extensive damage,” Director General Grossi said.

The Director General reiterated, however, that there has not been any radioactive release as a result of the damage, and that the NSC is able to continue to perform its protective function.

At Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP), the IAEA team has continued to hear explosions in the distance every day over the past week, a constant reminder of the potential dangers facing nuclear safety and security.

The IAEA team has conducted walkdowns across the site to observe site activities, visiting all Emergency Control Rooms of the six reactors, the safety systems of unit 4, and the two fresh fuel storage facilities.

At Ukraine’s three operating nuclear power plants (NPPs) – Khmelnytskyy, Rivne and South Ukraine – three of their total of nine reactors remained shutdown for maintenance and refuelling outages.  

At the South Ukraine NPP, the IAEA team reported about many air raid alarms over the past week. The team was informed by the site that six drones were detected at a distance of 1.5 km from the plant in the night of 25 April, coinciding with the sound of military activity that appeared to be coming from an attempt to shoot them down.

At the Khmelnytskyy NPP, the IAEA team members were required to shelter on the morning of 30 April due to an air raid alert.

As part of the IAEA’s medical assistance programme for Ukraine, 200 boxes of influenza medication were delivered to the National Research Centre for Radiation Medicine of the National Academy of Medical Sciences of Ukraine (NRCRM), funded by Japan.

Source: International Atomic Energy Agency – IAEA

IAEA experts based at Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) were required to stay indoors yesterday morning after hearing loud bursts of gunfire from near the main administrative building where their office is located, Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi said.

The ZNPP informed the IAEA staff members that a nearby “drone threat” had made it necessary to postpone the team’s planned activities at the site, the latest incident highlighting persistent risks to nuclear safety and security during the military conflict.

The IAEA team remained in the administrative building after the plant-wide shelter order was announced.

In addition, the IAEA team has continued to hear explosions and gunfire at varying distances from the plant almost every day during the past week.

“What was once virtually unimaginable – evidence of military action in the vicinity of a major nuclear facility – has become a near daily occurrence and a regular part of life at Europe’s largest nuclear power plant. From a nuclear safety perspective, this is clearly not a sustainable situation. The IAEA remains committed to doing everything we can to prevent a nuclear accident during this tragic war,” Director General Grossi said.

Despite the regular sound of military activities in the area, the IAEA experts have continued to conduct walkdowns across the plant to monitor and assess nuclear safety and security. In recent days, for example, the team visited the ZNPP’s low-level solid radioactive waste storage facility, as well as other installations at the sprawling industrial site.

In meetings earlier this week, the experts discussed with the ZNPP the staffing situation at the plant as well as various maintenance activities, including to some of the safety systems.

At Ukraine’s other nuclear power plants (NPPs) – Khmelnytskyy, Rivne and South Ukraine – IAEA teams have also continued to monitor nuclear safety and security. All three plants are still producing electricity, although some units are in planned outage while others occasionally have to reduce output.

At the Khmelnytskyy NPP, for example, one reactor remained in outage for maintenance and refuelling, while the power production of the second unit was reduced at the request of the grid operator for 36 hours earlier this week. At the Rivne NPP, a second unit was placed in outage for maintenance and refuelling, while the power production of a third was reduced at the request of the grid operator for a few days this week.

The South Ukraine NPP also experienced power variations this week. The IAEA team at the plant was informed that seven drones were detected 2 km east of the site on 17 April, also a frequent occurrence during the conflict. Likewise, the teams – particularly at the Chornobyl site and the South Ukraine NPP – have continued to hear air raid alarms most days.

The IAEA teams at the Rivne, South Ukraine and Chornobyl sites all rotated over the past week.

As part of the IAEA’s technical nuclear safety and security assistance to Ukraine, the Hydrometeorological Centre and the Hydrometeorological organizations of the State Emergency Services of Ukraine received radiation detection and measurement equipment, and associated reference sources procured with funding from Austria and the United States. It was the 131st delivery organized by the IAEA since the start of the conflict.

Source: International Atomic Energy Agency – IAEA

The IAEA team based at Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) today examined the area near the plant’s training centre where a drone was reportedly shot down and crashed, once again underlining potential risks to nuclear safety during the military conflict, Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi said.

The IAEA requested access to the purported crash site after receiving information from the ZNPP that the incident had occurred on Wednesday afternoon, local time. The crash sparked a fire that ignited surrounding vegetation but caused no casualties nor structural damage to the training centre itself, which is located just outside the site perimeter, the ZNPP added.

At the impact site, the IAEA team observed white ash covering a small area and was shown what the ZNPP identified as the remains of a drone, including four small electric motors still lying on the ground. Plastic fragments, apparently parts of the body of a drone, were also visible.

The latest incident came a few months after a similar report about a drone incident near the same training centre for the ZNPP. In February 2025, a drone attack caused significant damage to the New Safe Confinement structure at the Chornobyl site in northern Ukraine. There are also frequent reports of drones detected near Ukraine’s other nuclear sites.

“Any attempt to target a nuclear site with drones can have serious consequences. Whilst offensive drones may be relatively small, they can have serious implications for nuclear safety, for example by causing fires or structural damage. I continue to call for utmost military restraint near all nuclear facilities,” Director General Grossi said.

Source: International Atomic Energy Agency – IAEA

Frequent air raid alarms, the regular sound of explosions nearby and the presence of drones are continuing to highlight the dangers facing Ukraine’s main nuclear sites during the military conflict, Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said today.

“The nuclear safety and security situation in Ukraine remains precarious. This is very clear from the daily reports of our teams on the ground. Military activities are still taking place in the vicinity of nuclear sites, putting their safety at constant risk. Our work to help prevent a nuclear accident is far from over,” Director General Grossi said.

The IAEA continues to monitor and assess nuclear safety and security at Ukraine’s five main nuclear facilities and deliver essential equipment and other technical assistance, including medical support.

At the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) over the past week, the IAEA team based at the site has heard explosions at varying distances almost every day, as well as occasional bursts of gunfire.

As part of regular walkdowns across the site, the team visited the turbine halls of two reactor units, where they were again denied access to the western parts of the halls. The team also visited the site’s water treatment facility where they confirmed the arrangements for the treatment of wastewater and observed the testing of an emergency diesel generator.

At the South Ukraine NPP, the IAEA team was informed that five drones were detected 2 km west of the site during the night of 11-12 April. From their residence, the team observed the drones and heard gunfire apparently aimed at repelling them.

At the Chornobyl site, the IAEA team visited the New Safe Confinement and received an update on its status following the mid-February drone attack that punched a hole in the structure. Radiation levels remained normal for the area and there had been no release of radioactive substances beyond the established limits.

Air raid alarms were heard on most days over the past week at these two sites, the IAEA teams reported.

Over the past week, the IAEA has organised five additional deliveries of equipment as part of its efforts to help ensure nuclear safety and security, bringing the total to 130 since the start of the conflict.

The Rivne NPP received two static test benches that had been refurbished and modernized in Germany, with funding from Norway. Plant staff also received training on the newly automated system. The benches are used to test the plant’s hydraulic shock absorbers, which reduce vibrations in coolant pumps, steam generators and other equipment essential for nuclear safety.

Other types of equipment were delivered to Chornobyl, the Centralized Dry Spent Nuclear Fuel Storage Facility and State Specialized Enterprise “Radon Association”, which manages radioactive waste. These deliveries were funded by the European Union, Denmark and Sweden. The Khmelnytskyy NPP received medical equipment supported with funding from Norway.

Source: International Atomic Energy Agency – IAEA

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), along with experts from the People’s Republic of China, the Republic of Korea, the Russian Federation, and Switzerland, collected samples today of ALPS treated water that had been diluted with seawater ahead of its discharge into the sea at Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station (FDNPS).

The activity is the latest mission carried out under the additional measures which focus on expanding international participation and transparency, allowing hands-on independent measurements of the concentration level of the ALPS treated water which TEPCO – operator of the FDNPS – began discharging in August 2023. In September 2024, the IAEA agreed with Japan to implement additional measures. Through additional measures, third parties can independently verify that water discharge levels are, and will continue to be, in strict compliance and consistent with international safety standards.

Today’s sampling was the first mission of the additional measures under the IAEA framework to sample the diluted water from the discharge facilities at the plant. It follows a mission in February when IAEA Director General Grossi joined the activities with experts from China, the Republic of Korea and Switzerland to collect seawater samples from a boat in the vicinity of FDNPS. It also builds on the first practical steps of the additional measures carried out in October last year when international experts conducted seawater sampling.

The experts from the China Institute for Radiation Protection, the Korean Institute for Nuclear Safety, the Institute of Natural Monopolies Research in Russia, and the Spiez Laboratory in Switzerland collected samples from the discharge vertical shaft and seawater pipe header where ALPS treated water is diluted with seawater before being discharged through a  one-kilometre-long tunnel into the sea. The samples were taken from the 12th batch of ALPS treated water to be discharged. Last week, the IAEA confirmed that the tritium level in the 12th batch was far below Japan’s operational limit.

The samples will be analysed by the IAEA laboratory, by laboratories in Japan and in the participating laboratories from China, Korea, Russia and Switzerland, all members of the IAEA’s Analytical Laboratories for the Measurement of Environmental Radioactivity (ALMERA) network, which were selected for their high level of expertise and analytical proficiency.