IAEA missions to work at 7 critical substations in Ukraine - Energoatom head

MOSCOW. Oct 16 (Interfax) - Ukraine has designated seven power substations critical for distributing electricity generated by the nuclear power plants, where International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) missions will be deployed, Ukrainian media quoted Pyotr Kotin, head of the Ukrainian nuclear power plant operator Energoatom, as saying at an international conference hosted by the company on October 15.

"We have designated seven substations critical for supplying electricity, through which the NPPs distribute their output. We have drawn up a schedule of IAEA missions' presence. A mission at one of them has already started work," Kotin said.

Damage caused to these substations may endanger not only the output of electricity from NPPs themselves but also the supply of these NPPs from the Ukrainian power grid, potentially leading to their blackout and a serious disaster, he said.

"I think the extension of IAEA missions to substations could guarantee their protection politically," he said.

The Ukrainian Energy Ministry said referring to European Commissioner for Energy Kadri Simson as saying following a meeting of the EU Transport, Telecommunications and Energy Council on Tuesday that the European Commission would provide 3 million euros to finance the work of IAEA monitoring missions at Ukrainian NPPs, which could also be used at substations critical for the operations of NPPs.

The funding is to be provided under the European Instrument for International Nuclear Safety Cooperation, it said.

As reported, Simson said at a press conference following the EU Energy Council meeting in Luxembourg on Tuesday that the European Commission was willing to allocate an extra 3 million euros to fund the work of IAEA missions at Ukrainian substations related to NPP operations.