MELITOPOL, April 9. /TASS/. The shelling of the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant has necessitated the creation of new mechanisms for running a nuke plant, as no other nuclear facility has been the target of artillery strikes before, Renat Karchaa, an adviser to the director general of Russia’s Rosenergoatom nuclear power engineering company, told TASS.
"The nuclear industry is one of the most regulated industries, but to date, no regulation governs activities in the event of artillery strikes or a forceful takeover of a power plant. The recent developments have been writing a new chapter in the sphere of nuclear safety. Things that seemed crazy before have become real - history has never seen anything like this," he said.
According to Karchaa, a number of measures have already been taken at the Zaporozhye NPP to ensure security in these circumstances. He cited the Ukrainian attacks in November which damaged a power transmission line and cut a cable line.
"Those were major risks in terms of nuclear safety. To minimize them, we installed an alternate power source - mobile diesel generators that can replace stationary ones if they get damaged," Karchaa added.
"The sad story of attacks is writing the textbook, and we have to develop and implement alternative measures that can be taken, if nuclear safety is at risk, as we go," the official underscored.
"A lot of things at the Zaporozhye NPP still need extra protection," he concluded.