A regular meeting of the IAEA Board of Governors is taking place in Vienna, with the participation of the Ukrainian delegation led by Energy Minister German Galushchenko. During his visit, he met with representatives of EU member states at the IAEA.

German Galushchenko briefed the representatives on the complicated situation in the Ukrainian energy system following large-scale russian attacks on the Ukrainian energy infrastructure.

"Thermal and hydropower generation facilities have suffered the greatest damage, and the transmission system has been significantly damaged. Total system losses are up to 9 GW of capacity. The situation is now much worse than in 2022-2023. Restrictions are applied to consumers. We are preparing for a rather challenging situation in winter," the Minister said.

The Minister of Energy stressed that nuclear generation remained the mainstay of Ukraine's economy, while hostile attacks on substations posed threats to nuclear power plants and, therefore, to nuclear and radiation safety.

"At present, the attacks are focused on medium-sized capacities, but the enemy's goal is a complete blackout. We are preparing to ensure that all 9 NPP units operate in winter, this is our way to survive. Therefore, an important task is to protect nuclear energy, avoid blackout of nuclear power plants and ensure nuclear and radiation safety in Ukraine, on which global nuclear safety depends," the Minister stressed.

Special attention was paid to the situation at the russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia NPP and possible risks of its possible blackout. The important role of the IAEA observation missions for nuclear and radiation safety, which operate not only at ZNPP but also at other Ukrainian nuclear power plants, was emphasised.

Discussing the upcoming Peace Summit in Switzerland, German Galushchenko stressed the need to intensify practical efforts aimed at implementing the Peace Formula in Ukraine and its point on radiation and nuclear safety. The Minister thanked all the EU countries that joined the working group on radiation and nuclear safety and are actively working within the initiative of the President of Ukraine.