Russias Ambitious Plans to Revive Occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Plant with New Power Lines

Russia is constructing new power lines to reconnect and restart the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, which it took control of from Ukraine in 2022, as reported by the New York Times on Tuesday, referencing Greenpeace.

The facility, the largest nuclear power plant in Europe, was captured by Russian forces during the initial stages of the full-scale invasion, leading to the shutdown of all six reactors by 2023.

According to reports, President Vladimir Putin informed the head of the UN’s nuclear regulatory body last year that Russia would «definitely» resume operations at the plant. Last week, Alexei Likhachev, the chief of Rosatom, stated that upgrading the power infrastructure was one of the four essential steps necessary for restarting the plant.

Satellite imagery obtained by Greenpeace and analyzed by the New York Times reveals that Russia is constructing approximately 80 kilometers (50 miles) of new electricity lines and pylons, extending from the occupied port city of Berdyansk to Mariupol, where a large substation has been incorporated into the Zaporizhzhia plant located further west.

«This represents the first concrete indication of Putin’s strategy to restart the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant,» noted Shaun Burnie, a nuclear expert at Greenpeace Ukraine.

Prior to the conflict, the 6-gigawatt plant was linked to Ukraine’s power grid through four 750-kilovolt lines—two crossing through areas under Ukrainian control and two through territories occupied by Russia, which have sustained damage due to combat.

Experts indicated to the New York Times that at least one of these lines might have been restored, but complete integration would require «time.»

Burnie also mentioned that Russia could eventually connect the plant to its own electrical grid in the southern Rostov region, which borders Ukraine’s Donetsk and Luhansk regions.

In the meantime, Russian-appointed officials are retraining the staff at the plant in anticipation of returning the facility to its full operational capacity.