VIENNA, June 11. /TASS/. The Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) can continue to pump water for cooling from the Kakhovka reservoir after the dam burst, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said on Sunday.
According to the IAEA, "the water level by the ZTPP (Zaporozhye Thermal Power Plant where water is pumped into a channel for use at the ZNPP - TASS) was estimated at 11.27 meter, down from nearly 17 meters before the dam was breached."
"At the current height of the reservoir by the ZTPP, the water pumps continue to be operable. At the moment, however, they are not continuously being operated as both the ZTPP channel and the large cooling pond near the ZNPP are full, holding sufficient water reserves for several months of cooling requirements," the agency said.
However, it noted that the water level at the ZTPP may be two meters lower than in the rest of the reservoir.
"It is possible that this discrepancy in the measured levels is caused by an isolated body of water separated from the larger body of the reservoir. But we will only be able to know when we gain access to the thermal power plant," IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi was quoted as saying.
"The ZNPP cooling pond and the ZTPP discharge channel are both integral to continuing to supply cooling water and the Director General stressed again that maintaining their integrity is vital for the safety of the plant," the agency stressed.