• Geddy Paul

  Economics Editor

Russia’s state-owned nuclear company Rosatom is using a Dutch subsidiary to move hundreds of millions in profits, including during the war with Ukraine, according to the Amsterdam branch’s recently released annual report.

Some of these millions end up in Russia’s coffers through the state-owned company. Russia is also benefiting from Europe’s dependence on the Russian uranium sector during the war with Ukraine. Because of this dependence, Western governments have so far refrained from imposing sanctions on Rosatom.

Rosatom is a major producer of uranium and nuclear energy. In addition, the state-owned company plays a role in the war by operating the captured Zaporizhia nuclear power plant. Through its Dutch subsidiary Uranium One Cooperative, the Russian state-owned company is active in the extraction of nuclear raw materials in Kazakhstan and Tanzania.

From those countries, the revenues flow to the Netherlands before being sent to Russia. In 2022, the Dutch company made a profit of $240.6 million (€222 million). Tens of millions of dollars of that was transferred to the parent company in Russia.

Uranium trading and other activities also generate a significant amount of money for the Russian treasury every year. According to the parent company’s annual report, Rosatom paid more than 291 billion rubles (€3.1 billion) in taxes in 2022.

Despite the flow of money into the state coffers, Rosatom remains exempt from European sanctions. The nuclear sector in the West cannot do without this company, which is the world’s largest supplier of enriched uranium with a 35 percent market share.

“Russia is a major player in the nuclear sector,” said a spokesman for Urenco from Almelo. The company is active in uranium enrichment. “We see a movement of Western companies that no longer want to deal with Russia, after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. This has led, for example, to an increase in demand for uranium enrichment at Urenco.”

But it is not yet possible to completely replace the Russian part of the chain. Especially when it comes to recycling used uranium, the services of the Russians are currently the only option. Since 2022, work is underway in the UK to build a plant that can do this.

Another point of dependence is the old Soviet power plants in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Bulgaria, Hungary and Finland. These VVER nuclear power plants traditionally operate on Russian fuel rods. European companies are now also looking for alternatives. For example, two months ago in Bulgaria First Western Bars on me.

But research by the Norwegian environmental organization Bellona has shown that European imports of nuclear fuel from Russia have doubled in the past year. Slovakia and the Czech Republic in particular have seen a sharp increase in imports from Russia, perhaps in anticipation of future sanctions.

The EU has not yet imposed sanctions on Rosatom and its associated companies. This license also ensures that Russian uranium can reach the Netherlands. For example, at Yurenko. In February Granted The Nuclear Safety and Radiation Protection Agency (ANVS) has issued several more permits for the import of recycled Russian nuclear fuel destined for Almelo.

The uranium used comes from a French nuclear reactor. The French send the material to Russia and then enrich the recycled material again at Urenco. Almelo does not do direct business with Russia.

In the United States, calls for sanctions on the Russian nuclear sector are now becoming increasingly louder. Especially after the American newspaper The Wall Street Journal I published an article last year about Rosatom’s increasingly active role as a supplier to the Russian military.

Delving into both the Republican and Democratic camps now. Vote for To also impose sanctions on Rosatom. In addition, the United States will implement one starting in 2028. import ban On Russian uranium.