In June The UK Purchased no Fuels From Russia as Putin Plans to Disconnect Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Plant From Grid
The Statistic Was Released by The Office For National Statistics Following The UK’s Decision to End Its Dependency on Moscow For Energy in the Face of Kremlin Hostility Towards Its Neighbour Ukraine
Putin is Expected to Issue a ‘crazy’ Declaration of War in Order to Continue The Invasion of Ukraine
Britain imported no fuels from Russia in June for the first time on record following the imposition of sanctions over the invasion of Ukraine, official data shows.
The figure was released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) following the United Kingdom’s decision to phase out its use of Russian oil and gas in response to Kremlin aggression.
Russia has already been accused of weaponizing energy by restricting gas supply to Europe via the Nord Stream pipeline in response to sanctions, fueling spiking prices and a deepening cost-of-living crisis ahead of winter.
According to the ONS, Russian imports fell to £33 million in June, the lowest level since records began in January 1997.
This is a 96.6% decrease from the average monthly imports in the 12 months preceding the Ukraine invasion in February of this year.
Although British exports to Russia increased marginally month on month in June, they fell by £168 million, or about two-thirds, compared to the monthly average in the year to February.
By June, most commodity exports had decreased significantly, with machinery and transport equipment falling by £118 million, or 91%.
Chemicals were the only item shipped to Russia that increased over this time period, thanks to an increase of £39.1 million (61.8%) in sanctions-exempt medication and medicine exports.
While the UK’s economic sanctions are likely to have contributed to the drop in imports and exports, the ONS notes that so-called “self-sanctioning” in which traders proactively seek alternatives to Russian goods, was also a likely component.
The data was released as Ukraine marked 31 years since its independence from the Soviet Union, as well as six months since Russia’s invasion began.
Prior to the invasion of Ukraine, Russia was the United Kingdom’s top supplier of refined oil in 2021, accounting for 24.1% of total imports of this commodity, as well as 5.9% of crude oil imports and 4.9% of gas imports.
As a result of the UK government’s action, no refined oil, crude oil, gas, or coal, coke, or briquettes were imported from Russia in June.
This has encouraged importers to seek alternatives, and imports of refined oil from Saudi Arabia, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Kuwait have increased in recent months.
Russia ‘Has Plans to Disconnect Nuclear Plant From Ukrainian Grid’
According to the Guardian, Russia has devised a precise plan to cut Europe’s largest nuclear plant from Ukraine’s electricity grid, risking a catastrophic breakdown of its cooling systems.
World leaders have urged for the demilitarisation of the Zaporizhzhia site after video emerged showing Russian army trucks inside the plant and have previously warned Russia against disconnecting it from the Ukrainian grid and connecting it to the Russian power network.
However, Petro Kotin, the president of Ukraine’s atomic energy business, told the Guardian in an interview that Russian engineers had already worked out a blueprint for a switch in case fighting breaks existing power links.
“They presented [the plan] to [workers at] the plant, and the plant [workers] presented it to us. The precondition for this plan was heavy damage of all lines which connect Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant to the Ukrainian system,” Kotin said in an interview on Ukraine’s independence day on Wednesday, with the country mostly locked down because of the threat of Russian attacks.
He is concerned that Russia’s military is now focusing on those ties in order to make the emergency scenario a reality. Both Ukraine and Russia have accused each other of shelling the facility.
“They just started doing that, they starting all the shelling, just to take out these lines,” Kotin said.
Other threats to nuclear security at the facility include vehicles jammed so closely into turbine halls that firefighters would have difficulty accessing them if a fire broke out, as well as a terror campaign against workers who have decided to remain at the frontline plant.
One was killed, while another was gravely injured, requiring three months to recover. More than 200 people have been detained, according to Kotin.
Three of the four primary lines connecting the plant to Ukraine’s grid were destroyed during the fighting, and two of the three backup lines connecting it to a conventional power plant were also destroyed, he claimed.
The Russian plan to completely disconnect it would increase the risk of a catastrophic failure by relying on a single source of electricity to cool the reactors. “You cannot just switch from one system to another immediately, you have to … shut down everything on one side, and then you start to switch on another side,” he explained.
During a grid switch, the plant would be relied solely on a backup diesel-powered generator, with no other choices if that failed. The reactors would reach a deadly temperature after only 90 minutes without power.
“During this disconnection, the plant won’t be connected to any power supply and that is the reason for the danger,” he said. “If you fail to provide cooling … for one hour and a half, then you will have melting already.
The Zaporizhzhia plant was taken over by Russia in March, but it is being run by Ukrainian workers. In recent weeks, there has been growing concern over Russian handling of the site, as well as pressure on Moscow to allow UN inspectors to visit.
After progress in negotiations with Russia over a visit by the International Atomic Energy Agency, Kotin said inspectors from the UN’s nuclear watchdog might be at the plant in one or two weeks to check on security (IAEA).
Kotin is also concerned about the fire risk posed by vehicles crammed into the turbine halls, which are located adjacent to the two reactors that are still operational. According to plant sources, there are 14 trucks in one hall and at least six in another.
“In case there is a fire in the turbine hall you don’t even have a possibility to put it out or mitigate the consequences of this fire, because your fire brigades cannot get in, because any entry is blocked by the trucks, which are just packed in there,” he said.
“Any blaze could then potentially spread towards the reactor buildings, where a fire would have disastrous implications far beyond the immediate region.
“This situation is very dangerous not only for the plant, for Ukraine, but also for the whole world because you never can say what the weather would be like and what the wind direction [would be].”
Many more military vehicles are parked beneath overpasses, which were designed to hold pipes and walkways between reactor and turbine complexes, according to Kotin, possibly to protect against drones.
He commended the 9,000 workers that remain on the job at the plant, out of a prewar workforce of approximately 11,000. Many evacuated their family but remained on duty due to the requirement for qualified personnel to operate it.
Modernisations to Ukraine’s nuclear plants following the Chernobyl accident mean that, despite being built to Soviet specifications, Russian experts lack the capabilities to run it.
“Actually, they are heroes for us, just doing their job in such unbelievable conditions,” said Kotin, who spent most of his career at the facility and knows the workers well. He began as a fresh graduate and ascended through the ranks to become general manager.
Rockets have also landed within a few dozen metres of the plant’s 174 used fuel canisters, which would be more vulnerable to weapons than the reactors, which are designed to survive the crash of a passenger jet.
“Actually, they are heroes for us, just doing their job in such unbelievable conditions,” said Kotin, who spent most of his career at the facility and knows the workers well. He began as a fresh graduate and ascended through the ranks to become general manager.
Rockets have also landed within a few dozen metres of the plant’s 174 used fuel canisters, which would be more vulnerable to weapons than the reactors, which are designed to survive the crash of a passenger jet.”
However, Kotin said that he hoped nuclear inspectors would be able to visit the Zaporizhzhia plant within “one, maybe two weeks”.
“There is progress in negotiations … there is only modalities of the mission to finally agree between parties, and after that they will go. And actually I’ve seen some plans that they are to go at the end of the month.”
He said he also had confidence that Ukrainian workers who have sacrificed so much for the plant would be able to keep it safe.
“In any case, we won’t allow Russians to bring the world to the nuclear catastrophe and we will do everything just to return the plant to under our full control and operate it safely reliably, like it always been.”
Online sources:news.sky.com, theguardian.com All opinions and views expressed or suggested by the Digital Zeitgeist are not necessarily the same opinions and views held by or suggested by GPM-Invest plus any and all partners, affiliates, parties, or third parties of GPM-Invest. Any type of media distributed by GPM-Invest IS NOT financial advice. Please seek advice from a professional financial advisor