The city of Kurchatov, where the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant is located, and several nearby districts of the Kursk region were left without electricity on the night of August 9.
Fighting continues in Russia’s Kursk region. Among the possible goals of the military operation, which the Ukrainian authorities did not officially comment on, many analysts named taking control of the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant, the most important critical infrastructure facility in the Russian Federation.
What is known about the Kursk NPP?
The only one under construction
The Kursk NPP is one of the three largest in Russia and the only one where new power units are actively being built. The station consists of two operating power units with a total capacity of 2 GW. Since the resource of Kursk NPP power units has been exhausted, they plan to replace their capacity with Kursk NPP-2 units. The share of Kursk NPP among all power plants in the Black Earth Region is 49%, and among all Rosenergoatom stations is 16.8%. The station produces 90% of the Kursk region’s industrial energy consumption.
Increased security
According to Russian media, the Kursk nuclear power plant is being prepared for defense. The publication Important Stories wrote that Russian security forces blocked the entrances to the Kursk nuclear power plant on Friday afternoon.
In the past, the source of Important Stories at the Nuclear Power Plant reported that all men had been removed from the station’s security, leaving only female members of the National Guard. Immediately after this, the Russian Guard reported the strengthening of security at the Kursk NPP. A station employee confirmed to Important Stories today that the Russian Guard’s male warrant officers have been reinstated.
According to a source of the Russian publication, the management recommended that the employees of the nuclear power plant take a vacation at their own expense and evacuate the children. Rosatom confirmed that it has reduced the number of construction workers at the Kursk NPP-2.
Pro-war Russian bloggers are also reporting that the Kursk nuclear power plant is preparing for defense, as small mobile groups of the Ukrainian Armed Forces of 5-20 people have allegedly been spotted 39 kilometers from the nuclear power plant plants.
A drone has arrived
The city of Kurchatov, where the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant is located, and several nearby districts of the Kursk region were left without electricity on the night of August 9 due to a Ukrainian drone attack on a transformer substation, said the acting who is the governor of the region. Alexey Smirnov.
“As a result of debris falling from a Ukrainian aircraft-type UAV on a transformer substation, a fire broke out in one of the districts of the region,” the official wrote on his Telegram channel.
In addition to Kurchatov, where the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant is located, there is no energy supply in Kurchatovsky, Oktyabrsky, Bolshesoldatsky, Oboyansky, and Belovsky districts.
Not likely
The Economist, citing a source in the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, called the seizure of the Kursk nuclear power plant unlikely. According to the publication, Russian so-called “military correspondents” believe that the military, which is conducting an offensive in the Russian Kursk region, seeks to seize the Kursk nuclear power plant, as a retaliatory measure against Russia’s occupation of Zaporozhye nuclear . power plant.
A source in the Ukrainian General Staff suggested that this was unlikely, as it would require an advance of 80 km from the border and the gathering of larger forces.
“Without properly organized forces, the mistake the Russians made north of Kyiv in 2022 could be repeated. We cut their lines and they became easy prey,” he said.
Source: korrespondent
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.