5th Nuclear Power Plant Protection Battalion (Ukraine)

The 5th Nuclear Power Plant Protection Battalion is a specialized military formation of the National Guard of Ukraine. Its principal standing responsibility is the protection of the Rivne Nuclear Power Plant in Varash, Rivne Oblast, including security duties associated with a major nuclear installation and capabilities relevant to chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear defense. The unit is identified in Ukrainian military records as Military Unit 3045. The battalion was established in its current form in 1991, initially within the Internal Troops of Ukraine. Its formation reflected the need to maintain a dedicated armed security presence at a strategically important nuclear facility during the early post-Soviet period. The unit's role has combined protection of the plant and its infrastructure with military training, emergency readiness and support for broader national security tasks. In 2014, the battalion was transferred from the Internal Troops to the National Guard of Ukraine. Following that reorganization, its personnel were deployed to the area of the Anti-Terrorist Operation in eastern Ukraine, commonly known as the ATO zone, where they participated in Ukraine's military effort during the War in Donbas. This deployment expanded the unit's operational experience beyond fixed-site nuclear-facility security. The battalion continued to perform its nuclear-site protection mission while Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine created a wider and more dangerous operating environment. During the missile attack of 15 November 2022, the Rivne Nuclear Power Plant lost its connection to one 750-kilovolt transmission line. The resulting electrical disturbance required the plant to reduce power, and one of its four units shut down automatically. The incident demonstrated the relationship between military threats to Ukraine's energy infrastructure and the battalion's protective mission, although the available reference material does not attribute the transmission-line damage directly to the battalion or provide a detailed account of its response. Members of the unit have also taken part in combat operations away from the plant. The reference material records the deaths of several soldiers during 2023, including Volodymyr Petruk, Vitaly Lazarets, Oleksandr Zarutskyi and Taras Kuzka, as well as Volodymyr Bal and Vladyslav Denisyuk in December 2023. In 2024, battalion medic Ruslan Krysa was seriously wounded while operating near Kramatorsk and died from his wounds on 27 August. These casualties illustrate the dual character of the formation: it remains assigned to nuclear-power-plant protection while also contributing personnel to Ukraine's wartime defense. On 27 April 2024, the battalion received a combat flag, a formal military distinction recognizing its combat status and service. Colonel Arkady Agaltsov is listed as commander from 2017 onward in the available reference material. No reliable public information in the supplied sources establishes a separate commercial identity, civilian product portfolio, financial profile or corporate ownership structure. As a military unit, its functions are operational rather than commercial: guarding the Rivne Nuclear Power Plant, maintaining readiness for nuclear, radiological and other security contingencies, and supporting National Guard operations when assigned.

The 5th Nuclear Power Plant Protection Battalion was established in 1991 as part of the Internal Troops of Ukraine. Its original and continuing assignment was to guard the Rivne Nuclear Power Plant, a major nuclear-energy facility in Rivne Oblast. The unit developed as a dedicated security and defense formation rather than as a conventional commercial or industrial organization. Its responsibilities include protection of the plant and associated infrastructure, military readiness and capabilities connected with chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear threats. The battalion became part of the National Guard of Ukraine in 2014, when Ukraine reorganized its internal security and military structures. After the transfer, its personnel were sent to the Anti-Terrorist Operation zone in eastern Ukraine and took part in the War in Donbas. This period gave the unit experience in field operations in addition to its fixed-site mission at the Rivne plant. The unit remained associated with Rivne Nuclear Power Plant protection during Russia's full-scale invasion. The war placed Ukraine's nuclear facilities and electricity networks under heightened security pressure. On 15 November 2022, during a large Russian missile attack, the Rivne plant lost connection with one 750 kV power line. The plant reduced generation and one of its four units automatically shut down. The available source records the event in the context of the battalion's protective responsibility but does not provide enough information to determine the precise operational actions taken by the unit. The battalion also supplied personnel for combat operations. Four deaths were recorded in 2023 during the invasion: Volodymyr Petruk on 10 July, Vitaly Lazarets on 23 July in Berestove, anti-aircraft gunner Oleksandr Zarutskyi on 29 August, and Taras Kuzka on 16 September. On 18 December, Volodymyr Bal and Vladyslav Denisyuk were killed in Robotyne. In 2024, medic Ruslan Mykhailovych Krysa was wounded near Kramatorsk on 20 August and died six days later. These losses show that the formation's wartime role extended beyond its permanent nuclear-site assignment. On 27 April 2024, the battalion received a combat flag. Colonel Arkady Agaltsov is identified as commander from 2017 onward. Publicly available information supplied for this entry does not establish a founding commander, a complete succession of commanders, detailed force structure, equipment inventory or current operational deployment. The battalion remains an active National Guard formation centered on the security of the Rivne Nuclear Power Plant and Ukraine's broader wartime defense.

1. 2024Combat flag awarded

   The battalion received a combat flag on 27 April.

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2. 2022Rivne plant power connection disrupted during missile attack

   A 15 November missile attack caused the Rivne Nuclear Power Plant to lose one 750 kV connection, leading to reduced output and an automatic shutdown of one unit.

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3. 2014Transfer to the National Guard of Ukraine

   The unit was transferred from the Internal Troops to the National Guard and deployed personnel to the ATO zone during the War in Donbas.

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4. 1991Establishment in the Internal Troops of Ukraine

   The battalion was established to protect and guard the Rivne Nuclear Power Plant.

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A specialized Ukrainian National Guard formation combining nuclear-facility security, CBRN defense readiness and military combat responsibilities.

• 2024Battalion receives a combat flag

  The 5th Nuclear Power Plant Protection Battalion received a combat flag on 27 April 2024.

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• 2024Battalion medic Ruslan Krysa dies from wounds

  Medic Ruslan Mykhailovych Krysa was seriously wounded while operating in the Kramatorsk area on 20 August 2024 and died from his wounds on 27 August.

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• 2022Rivne Nuclear Power Plant affected by loss of a 750 kV power connection during missile attack

  During the 15 November missile attack on Ukraine, the Rivne Nuclear Power Plant lost connection with one 750 kV transmission line. Plant output was reduced and one of its four units shut down automatically. The battalion was responsible for the facility's protection.

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1. 5th Nuclear Power Plant Protection Battalion (Ukraine)