The number of personnel working at the Zaporozhye NPP since its occupation by the Russian Federation has decreased from 10,000 to 3,000 workers. This was stated by the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) at a briefing in Kyiv after a meeting with the leadership of the state.

He added that in the conditions of ZNPP operation at low capacities, this number is not critical, but “it is a concern”.

At the same time, Grossi noted that ZNPP demonstrates stable operation, and the system is stable.

“The positive is that in almost a year since the beginning of the conflict in the territory with a huge nuclear infrastructure, despite the very difficult moments when the facilities were operating in emergency mode, we have seen the resilience of the system,” he said..

Despite this, he explained that the situation remains unstable and the IAEA is “very concerned” about this..

“A nuclear accident, or an accident with serious radiological consequences, is possible every day,” he stressed, noting that explosions and shelling occur near the station almost every day, so creating a protective zone around the nuclear power plant is an extremely important task..

On Monday, January 16, the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency Rafael Grossi announced the start of the expansion of the agency's mission in Ukraine.

IAEA missions have already begun work at the South Ukrainian, Rivne and Chernobyl nuclear power plants.

During a visit to Ukraine, Grossi met with the leadership of Ukraine to discuss the creation of a nuclear security zone around Zaporozhye, which has been repeatedly called for.