Not only oil: the West has recognized dependence on Russia's nuclear energy

After the start of the special operation, when energy and food prices rose all over the world, the authorities of many countries began to discuss the possibility of abandoning Russian energy carriers. The proposals mainly concerned fossil fuels, which logically led to the imposition of sanctions for purchases of Russian coal, oil and gas. However, thanks to Rosatom, Russia is also one of the key suppliers of nuclear energy.

Researchers at the Norwegian Institute of International Relations (NUPI) conducted a study on the activities and global portfolio of Rosatom and its subsidiaries. Their findings, published in the journal Nature Energy, emphasize that Europe is very dependent on Russian nuclear energy, TechXplore reports.

"Our article appeared as part of a project dedicated to the future, in which climate policy will become an important factor, and survival strategies in a world where decarbonization is taking place, Russia is the world's largest producer of fossil fuels", - says Olin from the author of the study Kasper Shuletsky.

"We have begun to consider the Russian nuclear sector as an area where Russia's economic activity and global influence can increase. Surprisingly, almost no one talks about this sector in the context of sanctions or dependence on the EU".

The researchers studied data published by Rosatom and online media coverage concerning the company's projects and international activities after February 24, 2022. At that time, Rosatom and its subsidiaries had 73 active projects, under which they provided energy to 29 countries. To assess the dependence of different countries on Russian nuclear reactors, scientists have constructed a number of hypothetical scenarios, and calculated the share of electricity consumption in 29 countries where Rosatom operates, obtained from the company's nuclear reactors.

The countries that are most dependent on nuclear energy from Russia are Iran, Belarus and India. Followed by China, Egypt, Hungary, Turkey, Spain, Armenia, Bangladesh, Bulgaria, Slovakia, Nigeria, Uzbekistan, Finland, Czech Republic, Sweden, Kenya, Sudan and Tunisia. The researchers also identified several other countries that cooperate with Russia in the field of nuclear energy, albeit on a smaller scale.

In general, the study suggests that, despite the reduction of Rosatom's cooperation with the Eurozone countries, many countries of the world are still heavily dependent on Russian nuclear energy.