A high-level conference dedicated to restoring the New Safe Confinement at the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant, which was damaged in a Russian attack, was held in Paris. This was reported by Ukraine’s Ministry of Energy.
The event brought together representatives from 34 countries and international organisations. The Ukrainian delegation was headed by Deputy Energy Minister Anatolii Kutsevol.
“During the event, new members joined the donor coalition. A total of 14 countries and international organisations pledged €303 million to the International Chernobyl Cooperation Account (ICCA), managed by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), to finance restoration work on the confinement structure,” the ministry said.
The donors include the European Union, Germany, France, the United States, the United Kingdom, Norway, Poland, Switzerland, Lithuania, Austria, Canada, Greece, Italy, Moldova and the Netherlands. Some partners have already announced the amounts of their commitments, while others plan to announce their contributions in the coming months.
Ukraine’s First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Energy, Denys Shmyhal, thanked France during an online address for hosting the High-Level Donor Conference in Paris dedicated to restoring the New Safe Confinement at the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant. He recalled that the confinement structure was damaged by a Russian drone in February 2025.
“Approximately €500 million is needed to restore the facility. Temporary repairs are already underway. We plan to complete all engineering work and fully restore the functionality of the confinement structure by 2030,” Shmyhal emphasised.
The minister expressed Ukraine’s gratitude to every country that has already contributed to the restoration efforts and called on international partners to join the initiative.
“At the same time, Russia must ultimately pay the bill for the attack on the Chornobyl plant. We will therefore work with our partners to recover the restoration costs from Russian assets,” Shmyhal stated.
