The IAEA spoke about the possible consequences of a strike on spent fuel at the ZNPP

The hit of an artillery shell in the containment (hermetic containment of nuclear reactors) with spent fuel on the territory of the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) can lead to the effect of a “dirty bomb”, the deputy head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), head of the department, told RIA Novosti nuclear energy Mikhail Chudakov.

“If there is spent fuel at the site, which is dry stored in concrete containers, it is enough for an artillery shell to get there and it will turn out to be a “dirty bomb”. There is no need to look for bombs in the form of a bomb,” Chudakov told the agency on the sidelines of the Atomexpo forum in Sochi.

According to the deputy head of the IAEA, the containment is a three-meter concrete wall, such a protective shell does not resist artillery strikes. Chudakov explained that he saw “a hole two meters in diameter” at the Bushehr nuclear power plant in Iran, then the object was hit with a rocket, which “easily pierced and melted through the containment wall.”

Earlier this week, Russian Permanent Representative to International Organizations in Vienna Mikhail Ulyanov said that Russia is negotiating with regard to international monitoring of compliance with the agreements on the protective zone near the Zaporizhzhya NPP. On November 21, the CEO of the state corporation “Rosatom» Aleksey Likhachev warned about the risk of a nuclear accident at the ZNPP against the backdrop of shelling by the armed forces of Ukraine (AFU). Such an incident can forever change the course of history, so everything possible must be done to prevent it, Likhachev argued.

Since the beginning of the military special operation, the station has been shelled, in which Russia and Ukraine accuse each other. Active shelling of the Zaporizhzhya NPP by the Armed Forces of Ukraine resumed on November 19 and 20. According to Renat Karchaa, Advisor to the Director General of the Rosenergoatom Concern, 15 arrivals were recorded, including from special building No. 2, where fresh nuclear fuel is stored.

In this regard, the head of the IAEA, Rafael Grossi, called for an “immediate stop” to the shelling of the station. In mid-October, Grossi announced that he considered it possible to create a safe zone around the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant before the end of the year.

Press Secretary of the President of Russia Dmitry Peskov said that there were no “significant progress” in the issue of creating a security zone around the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant. He drew attention to the fact that the threat to the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant is posed by those who shell the power plant, that is, the Armed Forces of Ukraine, but IAEA specialists are “not authorized” to say who exactly is shelling, the Kremlin emphasized.