IAEA once again has problems shifting its team at Zaporizhia NPP stationed there for more than two months – Grossi

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has again encountered problems in rotating its mission to the Russia-occupied Zaporizhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) due to difficult military conditions, its Director General Rafael Grossi said.

According to information on the agency's website, the current team has been at the station for more than two months.

“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,” Grossi said.

He added that his top priorities were the safety of IAEA personnel and the plant itself.

Grossi recalled that the previous rotation, carried out in early March, was also postponed "due to difficult conditions on the ground."

The IAEA also indicated that five of the nine units of Ukraine's three operating nuclear power plants - Khmelnytsky, Rivne and South Ukraine - are currently operating in the energy system.

“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 noted.