The ‘cold shutdown’ of the sixth reactor at the Russia-controlled facility was performed early on Sunday
The last working power unit was switched off at the Russia-controlled Zaporozhye nuclear power station early on Sunday, the local authorities and the plant’s Ukrainian operator said.
The sixth reactor “was stopped at 3:45am. Now it doesn’t generate electricity,” Vladimir Rogov, a member of the Zaporozhye Region administration, said.
The decision to shut down was made due to continued shelling of the plant by Ukraine and damage to the power lines, he said. The constantly changing mode in which the reactors and turbines were forced to operate, because of the attacks, created the risk of an accident, the official explained.
According to Rogov, the unit had already been operating at minimum capacity for several days.
Ukrainian state-owned company Energoatom has also confirmed the so-called ‘cold shutdown’ of the last unit, with the Zaporozhye facility coming to a complete halt.
