Ukraine secures €400,000 for research on Chornobyl NPP Arch damage
Photo: Facebook / Svitlana Hrynchuk
The International Chernobyl Cooperation Account (ICCA) will allocate 400 thousand euros to study the damage to the New Safe Confinement Arch, which is located above the destroyed reactor of power unit No. 4 of the Chornobyl NPP.
The Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine, Svitlana Hrynchuk, reports this.
The post says, "400 thousand euros from the administrative budget of the International Chernobyl Cooperation Account for the study of the damage to the NSC Arch."
As Hrynchuk notes, such a decision was made during an extraordinary meeting of the Assembly of the account jointly by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine and the State Agency of Ukraine for Exclusion Zone Management.
Photo: Facebook / Svitlana Hrynchuk
The agency head stated that this funding marks the initial step in Ukraine's collaboration with partners to restore the NSC Arch to full operation following the Russian attack on February 14.
"The funds will be used for an expert assessment of the consequences of a Russian UAV hitting the protective sarcophagus of the Arch," Hrynchuk emphasized.
The department head also noted that the meeting discussed the preliminary results of the damage assessment and further steps to restore the functioning of the Arch of the New Safe Confinement.
"Today, the main thing is to conduct a qualitative analysis and unite our donors for further development. Restoring the functioning of the confinement is a huge challenge. Eliminating the consequences of Russian aggression will likely require more funds than are currently in the International Chernobyl Cooperation Account," she added.
For reference:
On the night of February 14, a Russian strike drone with a high-explosive warhead hit the shelter that protects the world from radiation from the destroyed 4th power unit of the Chornobyl nuclear power plant.
Judging by the published photos, the sarcophagus of the power unit was attacked by the Geran-2 UAV, which is the Russian version of the Iranian Shahed. This strike drone was equipped with a high-explosive warhead for maximum fire damage.
As of February 15, emergency responders managed to localize the fire in the filler of the outer skin of the shelter over the fourth reactor of the Chornobyl NPP.
The IAEA reported that after the drone hit, a hole with a diameter of approximately 6 meters formed. The flammable material in the roof skin fueled the fire. Experts were informed that the plant plans to install additional sensors to measure the dose rate and aerosol concentration near the attack site.
As of February 28, the IAEA team is closely monitoring the ongoing liquidation of the consequences of the drone attack on the shelter of the fourth power unit of the Chornobyl NPP in the exclusion zone and is monitoring the situation. Experts have not yet concluded on the origin of the UAV that damaged the Chornobyl shelter.
According to existing agreements, Ukrainian air defense forces do not shoot down enemy UAVs over nuclear facilities. Thus, as experts note, this was a deliberate crime by the Russian invaders.
**The two transliterations of the word "Chornobyl" and "Chernobyl" arise from the different ways the word is rendered from Ukrainian and Russian, respectively. These variations reflect the distinct phonetic and orthographic systems of the two languages.
The use of either variant depends largely on historical, linguistic, and cultural contexts. While "Chernobyl" was more commonly used internationally due to the prevalence of Russian language influence during the Soviet era, "Chornobyl" has gained prominence in recent years, reflecting Ukraine's efforts to assert its national identity and promote the Ukrainian language.
