Rosatom has confirmed the death of the chief engineer at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Station following a drone strike
Reuters has reported that two people have been killed, noting that Ukraine had not commented on the incident at the time of publication.
What Rosatom said
According to the Russian corporation, the strike took place on 15 July near the industrial site of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant — in the area between the plant and the occupied town of Energodar.
A drone allegedly struck a service vehicle. Inside the car were Oleksandr Yakovlev, whom the Russian side describes as the chief engineer of the Zaporizhzhia NPP, and the driver, Dmytro Filippov. Both were killed.
Rosatom chief Alexei Likhachev stated that the drone was Ukrainian. The corporation has not released any evidence that would allow for an independent determination of the drone’s origin or the circumstances of the strike.
Ukrainian state authorities have not yet commented on reports of their involvement in the attack.
The IAEA has not identified the perpetrator
Rafael Grossi, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, condemned the attack but did not attribute responsibility for it to either side.
Likhachev called on the IAEA to provide a “prompt, specific and clear response”. At the same time, the international agency traditionally refrains from drawing conclusions about who is responsible for attacks near the plant without the ability to independently verify the origin of the munitions or drones.
No information has been received regarding damage to equipment at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant or changes in radiation levels following the incident. According to the Russian side, the strike hit a vehicle outside the plant’s main nuclear facilities.
Who is Oleksandr Yakovlev?
In Rosatom’s statements, Oleksandr Yakovlev is referred to as the chief engineer of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant. However, the plant is under Russian occupation, and its management structure has been altered by the occupying authorities.
Therefore, the position held by Yakovlev within the Russian-established management system of the ZNPP does not imply recognition of his authority by the Ukrainian side. ‘Energoatom’ remains the official Ukrainian operator of the nuclear power station.
Rosatom has not published a detailed biography of Yakovlev, the date of his appointment, or any information on whether he worked at the plant prior to its seizure by Russian troops.
What is happening at the Zaporizhzhia NPP
The Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Station is located in Energodar and remains the largest nuclear power station in Europe. Russian troops seized the town and the station in early March 2022.
All six power units at the Zaporizhzhia NPP have been shut down. Even in this state, the plant requires a stable external power supply to operate the nuclear fuel cooling systems and other critical equipment.
The area around the Zaporizhzhia NPP is regularly subjected to shelling and drone attacks. Russia and Ukraine have repeatedly accused each other of carrying out the strikes, whilst the IAEA has, in most cases, confirmed the incidents themselves without identifying the perpetrator.
The international agency has consistently warned that hostilities near the nuclear power station pose a threat to nuclear safety. Damage to external power lines poses a particular danger: during the occupation, the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant has repeatedly lost connection to the power grid and switched to backup power.
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