MOSCOW, September 4. /TASS/: Members of the International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) mission, who remained working at the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant, plan to leave on September 6, but may extend their stay at the plant, Vladimir Rogov, a member of the main council of the military-civilian administration of the Zaporozhye Region, said on Sunday.
"Regarding the mission. It will be working until the fifth [of September] tentatively, that is, tomorrow they are still working, and on the sixth they move out. This is still preliminary. They can extend their stay," he said on the air of the Komsomolskaya Pravda radio.
According to him, members of the mission "are now making continuous inquiries". Rogov explained that the nuclear plant employees pay special attention to compliance with regulations. "In fact, all these years they have been hammering nails with a microscope, if we talk about the rules of operation of the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant, they have squeezed all the juice out of it," he said. According to him, routine maintenance was done poorly or was simply imitated by repainting the equipment.
Rogov also confirmed information that some IAEA experts may stay at the plant on a permanent basis. "Discussions that they may stay are really going on. Personally, I don't see any obstacles for them to stay, to work," he said.
Alexander Volga, head of Energodar's military-civilia administration, told TASS on Saturday that 13 people remained at the nuclear power plant and would be in town until September 5.
On September 1, the IAEA mission arrived at the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant. According to Rafael Grossi, IAEA Director General, the international inspectors were able to obtain key data on the situation at the plant, but continue their work, as many issues require more detailed discussion. Grossi also spoke to the residents of Energodar, they handed him a petition to stop Ukrainian provocations against the plant.
