Donors to the International Chernobyl Cooperation Account (ICCA), managed by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), have endorsed plans for early engineering and procurement works that will pave the way for potential repairs to the New Safe Confinement (NSC) at the Chernobyl nuclear power station in Ukraine.

A Russian drone strike in February 2025 damaged the NSC, the giant structure built to contain the remains of Unit 4 and enable the safe dismantling of the original sarcophagus, which was hastily built after the 1986 accident.

Preliminary assessments by Novarka 2 – comprising the original NSC designer-builder Bouygues Travaux Publics and Vinci Construction Grands Projets – estimated that the corrosion of the steel arch threatened the long-term safety of the NSC, and that work was needed to restore the structure to full functionality by 2030. Repairs could cost at least €500m ($576m).

The endorsed plan is designed to create a solid basis for a later decision on how the construction should proceed. Donors have approved the EBRD’s recommendation to allocate €30m for this purpose.