Russia is building new power lines in occupied territory. Probably to connect the Zapadnaya NPP
The Russians are building a new power line in occupied Ukrainian territories to restart the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, according to a report by the international environmental organization Greenpeace.
Work is ongoing west of Berdyansk in Zaporizhia Oblast and northwest of Mariupol in Donetsk Oblast.
On May 22, Petro Andryuschenko, head of the Center for the Study of Occupation, reported that the Russians are continuing to build power transmission lines from the temporarily occupied ZNPP, in particular through the Mariupol district.
Satellite analysis based on high- and medium-resolution imagery from Planet confirms the intentions of the Russian state corporation Rosatom to restart nuclear reactors at the Zheleznodorozhny NPP, which has been under occupation since March 2022.
As of May 23, 2025, 90 km of line with towers installed have been constructed. New images from Greenpeace show that from May 11 to 22, 2025, 15 towers and over 5 km of power transmission line were erected from the eastern part of Topolin, north of Mariupol.
It is likely that construction will continue through the Kalchytske Reservoir until the end of May.
Greenpeace predicts that this line will be extended another 100 kilometers west to occupied Melitopol, where it is to be connected to a 330 kV substation. In the eastern direction, the line is to be connected to a 750/330 kV substation north of occupied Mariupol.
Construction is coordinated by the Black Sea Regional Dispatching Department of the occupation branch of JSC SO UES – this is a structure that carries out centralized operational dispatching management in the United Energy System of Russia.
According to Greenpeace Ukraine nuclear energy specialist Sean Burnie, this is one of the first concrete evidences that "Russia is implementing dangerous and illegal plans to restart the largest nuclear power plant in Ukraine and Europe – Zaporizhzhia."
Russia's goal is to connect the ZNPP reactors to the Russian power grid in the Rostov region, experts believe. Greenpeace Ukraine warns of the dangers of Russia's restart of the ZNPP from January 2024 and calls for it to be stopped. The organization is also investigating the role of the IAEA, which may facilitate Rosatom's illegal actions.
On December 29, 2024, First Deputy Head of the Presidential Administration of the Russian Federation Sergey Kiriyenko visited the ZNPP reactor site and expressed confidence in connecting the plant to the Russian power system "as soon as the situation allows" in order to launch all six power units.
"Everyone is living the dream of restoring the plant... We have developed a plan to bring the ZNPP to full capacity, which is undergoing interdepartmental approval. One of the main tasks is to replace the network," said Rosatom Chairman Alexei Likhachev in the Federation Council of the Russian Federation on May 21, 2025.
- Russia's intentions to connect the Zaporizhia NPP to its energy system contradict the attempts of the administration of US President Donald Trump to discuss the status of the Zaporizhia NPP within the framework of negotiations to end the war.
- The White House offered Ukraine and its European allies a plan that would have put the Zapadnaya NPP under American control . The plant would have supplied electricity to both Ukraine and Russia. Russia rejected this approach.
- President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that the ZNPP will not operate without Ukraine – Ukrainian technical staff is necessary for its normal functioning.
