Satellite images indicate Russia's plan to restart the captured Ukrainian nuclear power plant. This was reported by The New York Times, reports UNN.
Details
According to a new Greenpeace report, Russia is building power lines in the occupied southern part of Ukraine to connect a large nuclear power plant it seized to its own grid.
This is the clearest evidence of Moscow's intention to restart and operate an autonomous facility, despite the risks and calls to resolve the status of the plant as part of peace negotiations.
The Greenpeace report, shared with The New York Times, contains satellite images showing that since the beginning of February, Russia has been building more than 50 miles of power lines and pylons between the occupied Ukrainian cities of Mariupol and Berdyansk, along the coast of the Sea of Azov. Satellite images were verified by The Times.
Based on the location and direction of the works, Greenpeace reported that the purpose of the project was to connect new power lines to a large substation near Mariupol, which was connected to the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, located approximately 140 miles to the west.
Putin's plan to restart the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant depends on securing new power lines - this is the first physical evidence of these plans
Moscow's exact plans remain unclear. Questions arise as to whether it seeks to operate the plant in post-war Ukraine, or to do so during hostilities. In any case, experts note, Russia will need to build several more lines to connect the Zaporizhzhia power plant to its own energy system, and this process will take some time.
Independent Ukrainian nuclear energy expert Olga Kossharna said that connecting the plant to its own energy system was a long-standing goal of Moscow, which was mentioned in official statements throughout the war.
This would be the first time that a warring state seized a nuclear facility in another country and then used it for its own energy needs. And this would contradict the recent efforts of the Trump administration to discuss the fate of the station as part of possible peace negotiations.
Trump has expressed interest in the United States taking control of Ukrainian nuclear power plants, citing security concerns and their economic potential. Last month, the White House presented Kyiv and its allies with a peace plan calling for Russia to return the plant to Ukraine, but under US management. According to this plan, the facility will supply electricity to Ukraine and Russia.
Russia has categorically rejected this idea, and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told CBS News that the Zaporizhzhia NPP is managed by the Russian nuclear giant "Rosatom", and that he does not believe that "any changes are possible." "Rosatom" and the Russian Ministry of Energy did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the construction of new power lines.
The recent construction of the power line suggests that Russia seeks not only to preserve the plant, but also to use it to power its own grid.
Addition
Built in Soviet times, the Zaporizhzhia NPP is the largest nuclear energy complex in Europe. Its six reactors can produce up to six gigawatts of electricity - enough to power all of Portugal - and they supplied almost a quarter of Ukraine's electricity before the start of the war in 2022.
The station is located in the Russian-controlled part of the southern Zaporizhzhia region of Ukraine, dangerously close to the front line, which makes safe operation impossible. All six reactors were gradually shut down after Russia seized the facility, the last of which was shut down in 2023.
Let us remind you
As of May 15, the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, which has been under Russian occupation since 2022, has already relied on a single power line for more than a week to provide electricity.
Earlier, UNN wrote that the Russian occupiers illegally deprived of their freedom at least 13 employees of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. The invaders also continue to use the Zaporizhzhia NPP as a military facility.
At the same time, Ukraine is not able to conduct a proper investigation of operational events at the ZNPP. This is due to the lack of complete information.