Zaporizhzhia plant cut off from grid, with two weeks of fuel
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Bénin Web TV
The Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant lost its last power connection on 8 November and is now running on diesel generators. The IAEA estimates fuel reserves are sufficient for about two weeks, while the six reactors remain shut down, according to the IAEA and plant officials.
The Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, controlled by Russia in southeastern Ukraine, lost its last active connection to the electricity grid on 8 November and is now running on diesel generators. The Ferosplavna-1 line was disconnected at 2:36 a.m. local time, according to Ukraine’s state nuclear operator Energoatom and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
The IAEA estimates that the available fuel reserves would allow a limited number of emergency generators to operate for about two weeks. The agency said the cause and exact location of the disconnection remain unknown, while the Moscow-installed management said damage had automatically triggered the disconnection and that radiation levels remain normal.
Energoatom has recorded sixteen total interruptions to external power supplies since the beginning of 2026. The plant’s other major supply line, Dniprovska, has been unavailable since 23 October, according to the IAEA.
The six Zaporizhzhia reactors are shut down, but nuclear fuel and safety equipment must continue to be cooled with a permanent electricity supply. A local truce negotiated by the IAEA had allowed Ukrainian technicians to repair Ferosplavna in September, after an outage that began on 20 August.
