ISW: Russia nears restart of Europe’s largest nuclear plant in Zaporizhzhia

Russia is reportedly close to restarting the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP), Europe’s largest, and is working to connect the occupied facility to its own power grid, according to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).

“Russia is continuing efforts to formalize its control over the occupied ZNPP, setting conditions to restart power generation at the plant and connect it to the Russian power grid,” the ISW report says.

Russia occupied the facility in March 2022 amidst its full-scale invasion of Ukraine that year. 

On Feb. 3, Andrei Tyurin, a representative of Russia’s Federal Service for Environmental, Technological, and Nuclear Supervision (Rostekhnadzor), visited the ZNPP to discuss its operation and safety. 

After the visit, Russian authorities announced plans to issue a license for the operation of the plant’s second reactor within the next month.

Analysts note that Russia had already issued a license for ZNPP’s first reactor in June 2025. They say these developments indicate that Moscow is gradually preparing to restart the plant and integrate it into Russia’s power grid — a process that has been ongoing for over a year.

Meanwhile, on Feb. 7, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy described the negotiations with Russia over ZNPP and territorial issues as reaching a “dead end.”

“No mutual understanding has yet been reached regarding ZNPP. All parties recognize that decisions about the plant must be made alongside issues concerning the dam, water use, and the broader ecosystem of the area,” Zelenskyy said.