The Group of Seven has pledged €260 million to repair a protective shield at Ukraine’s Chernobyl nuclear power plant after it was damaged by a Russian drone strike in February 2025, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) said Thursday. The New Safe Confinement covers the remains of Reactor Four, which exploded in 1986 in the world’s worst nuclear power accident. The strike punctured its inner and outer layers, damaging systems designed to contain radioactive material and enable the dismantling of an older sarcophagus. The EBRD estimates that repairs will cost at least €500 million and must be completed by 2030 to reduce the risk of corrosion of the steel structure. The funding pledge follows earlier warnings that the strike had compromised the shelter, a crucial safeguard at the decommissioned plant in northern Ukraine. The EBRD plans to hold a donor conference in Paris on November 9 to seek further additional contributions.
