(MENAFN) The protective enclosure above the reactor at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant is no longer able to fully ensure radiation containment, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

The organization stated that substantial and immediate restoration work is now necessary.

This alert comes after an inspection initiated in response to a drone strike in February, which represented the first significant assault on the structure.

Moscow asserted that the incident was a provocation staged by Kiev, whereas the Ukrainian authorities attributed the attack to Russia.

The strike punctured the exterior layer of the immense steel arch, known as the New Safe Confinement (NSC), and ignited a blaze.

Although the initial destruction did not release radiation, the updated evaluation reveals that the structural rupture has weakened the shelter’s capacity to contain nuclear contaminants.

On Friday, the IAEA verified that the NSC—a 36,000-ton steel edifice constructed over the ruined Unit 4 reactor at Chernobyl—“had lost its primary safety functions, including the confinement capability.”

Finalized in 2019 and costing approximately €1.5 billion (about $1.6 billion), the NSC was intended to enclose radioactive substances and secure the original concrete “sarcophagus” erected after the 1986 catastrophe.

IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi noted that although the shelter’s load-bearing frame and monitoring networks remain operational, “limited temporary repairs have been carried out … comprehensive restoration is urgently required.”

Inspectors from the IAEA have deployed additional nuclear-safety specialists to the facility to determine the complete scope of the deterioration.

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