Uranium enrichment: there is still a demand for work with Rosatom in the EU countries

A quarter of Rosatom's foreign revenue is consistently provided by contracts with unfriendly countries, the state corporation told Izvestia. At the same time, the company, despite the preparation by the European Commission of a plan to abandon cooperation with the Russian Federation in the nuclear field, does not feel a reduction in the number of orders from EU countries. European nuclear power plant operators themselves warn the authorities of the countries about the impossibility of refusing to cooperate with the Russian Federation. In the face of Western sanctions pressure, Rosatom also retains major projects in Asia, Africa, the Middle East and the former Soviet Union. According to experts, the popularity of the state corporation is associated with its unique model of operation in the global nuclear market.

Cooperation with European companies

Rosatom continues to cooperate with European companies, despite sanctions and attempts by the European Commission to complicate cooperation. Moreover, the demand for his services is not decreasing.

— We do not feel a reduction in the volume of orders from the EU countries. Our production facilities are fully loaded," the company told Izvestia.

The state corporation ranks first in the world in terms of the portfolio of orders for the construction of nuclear power plants: 41 power units in 11 countries are at various stages of implementation, they added. We are talking about projects in Bangladesh, Belarus, Hungary, Egypt, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, China, Turkey, Uzbekistan and, more recently, Vietnam.

"Rosatom's foreign revenue has almost doubled since 2021, while contracts with unfriendly countries consistently provide a quarter of this volume," the company said.

Its cooperation with the Europeans has been going on for decades and covers a wide range of areas — from the development of nuclear generation, nuclear fuel supplies and fuel cycle services to technological partnerships, scientific research, safety issues and personnel training, the state corporation noted. It is this long-term cooperation that makes it so difficult for Brussels to quickly break away from nuclear energy.

Nevertheless, the EU is still preparing a proposal to abandon cooperation with Russia in this area, the European Commission said earlier. Formally, the political decision has already been made. In May 2025, the EC presented the REPowerEU roadmap for the complete cessation of dependence on Russian energy, including the nuclear sector. Brussels has proposed two key mechanisms for the nuclear industry: to limit new contracts with Russian suppliers and to oblige EU countries to prepare national plans for the abandonment of Russian products, fuel cycle services, spare parts and maintenance.

It was this plan that became the basis for future restrictions in the nuclear field, although in practice implementation is much slower than the political statements of Brussels.

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The EU cannot quickly abandon Russian fuel for nuclear power plants

In the European Union, nuclear power plants with VVER type reactors are located in five countries: Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Finland, Hungary and Slovakia. We are talking about Soviet and Russian-designed reactors, which have historically been used to build fuel supply chains and related services.

The main alternative suppliers for VVER operators are the American Westinghouse and the French Framatome, however, in many cases their contracts are still running parallel to the existing ones with Rosatom. Izvestia has sent a request to European operators of VVER type reactors.

"Our partners, in particular, responsible European operators of Russian—designed nuclear power plants, are forced to work in conditions that are determined at the European Union level, but at the same time explain to the leadership of their countries that an instant transition from Russian fuel for VVER to products from other manufacturers is impossible, as this carries certain risks for the operation of nuclear power plants," the company noted. state corporations.

The fact is that there is a certain practice in the world of qualifying new nuclear fuel solutions — this requires years of development, testing and post-reactor research.

The new supplier must develop suitable assemblies, conduct tests, and go through a lengthy licensing process with national regulators. In addition, Europe and its partners do not yet have enough capacity to immediately replace Russia along the entire chain — from fuel production to conversion and enrichment services.

The Czech Republic has already started receiving fuel from new suppliers, Finland loaded the first batch of Westinghouse fuel in 2024, Bulgaria also switched to the first deliveries, and Hungary is still preparing a replacement: the contract with Framatome for Paksha will start operating in 2027.

Hungary retains the closest cooperation with a company from the Russian Federation in the EU.: The Russian side continues the Paks-2 NPP project, where the first concreting of the new unit began in February 2026. At the same time, fuel diversification for the existing Paks NPP is only being prepared and is scheduled to begin in 2027-2028.

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Why does a Russian company maintain its position in the global market

The fact that it is so difficult for Europeans to quickly replace Russian supplies is largely due to the very model of Rosatom's work in foreign markets. The uniqueness of the Russian state corporation as a player in the global nuclear market is determined by a whole architecture of competencies that has been built over decades and covers the full nuclear fuel cycle, said Nadezhda Kapustina, professor at the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation.

We are talking about the chain from the extraction and enrichment of uranium to the design of reactors, the construction of power plants, the supply of fuel assemblies, the management of spent nuclear fuel and the subsequent decommissioning of facilities. Each of these links is supported by its own research base and industrial infrastructure, which is considered an exceptional rarity in world practice, the expert emphasized.

The closeness of the technological chain explains why a number of countries, ranging from Hungary and Turkey to Egypt, Bangladesh and India, continue to attract companies from the Russian Federation to large-scale projects, despite sanctions pressure and difficulties with payments.

"The Russian side offers not just a reactor or a batch of fuel, but a ready—made integrated solution, including financing, training of national personnel, technology transfer and long—term service support for the entire life cycle of the plant, which is more than 60 years," Kapustina added.

Currently, none of the potential competitors is able to reproduce a similar range of services on a comparable scale. The French and American sides have serious expertise in reactor engineering. However, for example, the European Pressurized Reactor project at Flamanville in France and the construction of AP1000 units at the Vogtl NPP site in the United States have demonstrated chronic delays and multiple budget overruns, she said.

— The example of Kazakhstan is illustrative, which in 2025 chose Rosatom as the leader of the international consortium for the construction of the first nuclear power plant. This suggests that even against the background of sanctions pressure, the company remains competitive in new markets," said Evgeny Sumarokov, Associate Professor of the Department of International Business at the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation.

At the same time, Russia's cooperation with European partners is not limited only to fuel supplies or the construction of nuclear power plants. One such example is the international ITER project, which is creating a new generation experimental thermonuclear reactor in the south of France. The state corporation is working with France in the international ITER project through Rosatom structures, which supply some of the equipment and fulfill Russian obligations under the project. The EU, Russia, the USA, China, India, Japan and South Korea are participating in it.

"This project shows that even in difficult conditions, international cooperation in strategically important areas will remain in demand," the state corporation stressed.

The state corporation concluded that they are interested in developing mutually beneficial cooperation with foreign partners where there is mutual interest, mutual respect and understanding of the long-term importance of nuclear energy.

Only such an approach can ensure the safety, stability and reliability of the supply of uranium resources necessary for the development of nuclear energy in the world.