Zaporizhzhia NPP restores external power after month-long blackout

Power engineers have restored external electricity to the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP), which had been running on diesel generators for the past month, Energy Minister Svitlana Hrynchuk reported. Russian forces and IAEA have confirmed the restoration.

The power supply was restored following repairs to the 750 kV Dniprovska power line. Work is still ongoing to repair the 330 kV Ferosplavna line, which has been out of service since May.

During the blackout, the safety of Europe’s largest nuclear power plant was maintained solely by emergency diesel generators. The month-long outage was caused by systematic shelling and damage to power lines by Russian forces, which disconnected ZNPP from Ukraine’s unified energy system.

This marks the 42nd occasion since the start of the full-scale invasion that Ukrainian power engineers have restored electricity to the plant.

"The only way to ensure long-term nuclear safety is to fully demilitarize and de-occupy Zaporizhzhia NPP and return it to the full legal control of the Ukrainian operator, Energoatom," Hrynchuk wrote on Facebook.

• Although ZNPP is not generating electricity, it requires external power to cool its reactors and spent fuel, and to operate safety systems. Since September 23, the plant has been running on backup diesel generators, as all external power lines were cut off.
• On June 6, 2025, Russian authorities stated that Rosatom already had a plan for the phased commissioning of ZNPP with connection to the Russian power grid, and had begun constructing a floating pumping station to cool the reactors.