Blackout in southern Russia after nuclear plant failure
Rosenergoatom announced that Power Unit No. 1 of the Rostov Nuclear Power Plant has been reconnected to the grid. Yesterday, the largest Russian nuclear power plant experienced a "large-scale failure" that left southern Russia without power. The radiation levels are normal.
The power outage affected Rostov-on-Don, Kabardino-Balkaria, Stavropol, and the annexed Crimea. Krymenergo added that shutting down power lines is a necessary measure to minimize the overload on network devices.
The outages affected Sudak, Yalta, Alushta, Theodosia, Kerch, and several other cities. In Simferopol and the Simferopol district, there was also no power.
Blackout in southern Russia
In Krasnodar, on the afternoon of 16th July, more than 100 substations were out of service, and about 100 streets were without power. Trams and trolleybuses stopped in the city. The failure occurred when the temperature exceeded 40°C.
Problems with the turbogenerator
On Tuesday afternoon, Rosatom's press service informed RIA Novosti of a "large-scale failure." "Automation shut down one of the power units due to problems with the turbogenerator at the Rostov Nuclear Power Plant," the statement reads.
After nearly 24 hours, the unit was reconnected to the grid, and the radiation levels were assumed to be expected.
Further power outages
The Rostov Nuclear Power Plant is located near Volgodonsk. It consists of four power units. It is the largest station in the country's south, with a capacity of 4 GW. The power plant is among the top three in terms of generation in Russia and supplies electricity to the southern regions and the North Caucasus, home to over 26 million people.
Mass power outages have been observed in the Krasnodar region in the last two weeks. The most significant incident occurred on 9th July, leaving 325,000 Kuban residents without power. The Ministry of Energy stated that the cause was "high seasonal consumption due to maximum summer temperatures": to avoid overheating, people massively turned on air conditioners and fans, and the networks could not withstand such a load.
