Berlin April 25, 2025 – Briefing by Vladimir Slivyak 1
The nuclear fuel producing facility in Lingen, Germany, is owned by the French company Framatome through its subsidiary, Advanced Nuclear Fuels GmbH (ANF). It is producing fuel rods and assemblies for pressurized water reactors and boiling water reactors in various countries.
Since 2021, Framatome is awaiting the German authorities’ permission to start joint manufacturing of nuclear fuel with the Russian state-owned nuclear corporation Rosatom, which is directly and indirectly involved in the war in Ukraine since 2022.
There are 19 nuclear reactors of Russian design in operation in 5 EU countries (Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Finland). These reactors require a particular fuel type which is produced in Russia by Rosatom. The not-yet-approved joint venture between the Russian and French state-owned nuclear companies is set to manufacture fuel for Russian- designed nuclear reactors in European countries.
Since the beginning of the Russian full-scale invasion in Ukraine, Framatome continued close cooperation with the Russian state nuclear industry.
Over 82 tons of Russian uranium were imported in Germany in 2024 – nearly 70% more than in 2023. 2At least 18 uranium deliveries from Russia arrived at ANF in Lingen since 2022. 3
Cooperation with Russia on the highly sensitive matter of nuclear supply creates enormous risks for nuclear safety and security not only for Germany, but for the entire European Union.
The incoming German coalition government must reject any such plans.
1 Vladimir Slivyak, co-chairman of Russian environmental group Ecodefense, 2021 Right Livelihood Award laureate2 charts.info/charts/energy_source_trade/chart.htm?l=de&c=DE&dataType=uranium_enriched_import_export_abso lute&sum=1&year=-1&legendItems=pyg3 Based on the data from BASE transport lists, calculated by A.Vent, AgiEL, April 2025.
The Russian state-owned nuclear corporation Rosatom is directly and indirectly involved in the Russian full-scale invasion in Ukraine.
It comprises over 350 companies involved in civil and military nuclear production. Rosatom is in charge of designing, producing and maintaining Russian nuclear weapons.Although Rosatom itself was not sanctioned as a legal entity, various members of its supervisory board were. Among these are Sergey Kirienko, deputy head of the Russian presidential administration (sanctioned by the EU, US, UK) and Sergey Korolyov, deputy head of Russia’s main security service FSB (sanctioned by the EU, UK, Australia, Canada, Ukraine, and others). The supervisory board is Rosatom’s main governing body. It also includes deputy prime-ministers of the Russian government and advisors to President Putin. 4
The European Parliament repeatedly called on states to sanction Rosatom and halt all cooperation with Russia’s nuclear industry. 5
Rosatom has offered to help sanctioned Russian arms manufacturers with access to materials needed to produce weapons, tanks, and aircraft. 6 Rosatom employees assisted the Russian army in occupying the zone around the Chernobyl nuclear plant. They are also part of the ongoing occupation of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant. 7
Rosatom is a geo-political arm of the Kremlin working to create and maintain dependence on Russian nuclear supplies around the world which increases Russian political influence.
According to Rosatom, it is building over 30 nuclear reactors in 10 countries. 8 These deals are usually up to 90% funded by the Russian state budget. An example of such Russian political influence is the project of Paks-2 in Hungary funded by Moscow: Hungary was blocking every EU attempt to sanction the Russian nuclear industry. Additionally, Rosatom signed cooperation agreements with over 30 African countries where nuclear reactors may be built in the future. 9
Framatome applied to the German authorities for permission to produce nuclear fuel jointly with Rosatom in 2021. According to Lower Saxony’s environmental minister Christian Meyer, Rosatom employees would be present at the facility if the activity were permitted. 10That raised concerns among experts and environmental groups, as well as regional4 5 , 6 7 8 4129cbea2aaa69b1da5d09a41804f7459 10
authorities, over possible espionage and sabotage at the nuclear facility by Russian security services. 11Framatome has now conceded that no Rosatom employees are on-site. However, there is still a risk of espionage and sabotage, as initial contacts between employees of the two companies have already taken place. 12As of April 2025, the decision to allow Rosatom and Framatome to cooperate in Lingen is still not approved by the German authorities. However, in May 2024 it was reported that Rosatom experts were seen in Lingen. 13In 2024, the Lower Saxony Ministry of the Environment announced a public hearing in Lingen to discuss with local citizens the cooperation project between Framatome’s ANF and Rosatom. Over 11,000 objections reached the ministry before the hearing in November. 14Most speakers at the hearing criticized the cooperation plan with Rosatom, citing safety and security concerns.
Germany needs to keep Rosatom out of Lingen.
Despite the war in Ukraine and Rosatom’s direct involvement in it, the French company Framatome continues to cooperate with the Russian nuclear industry and wants to jointly manufacture nuclear fuel.
That will not only allow Rosatom to penetrate the European nuclear supply chain even deeper, threatening safety and security, it will also create larger European dependence on Russian energy and bring more money to Moscow to continue the war in Ukraine.
Rosatom cannot be considered a reliable partner because it is owned by the Russian government and managed by sanctioned top officials, including from Russia’s security services. It was involved in military activities during the war in Ukraine and offered to help the Russian arms industry bypass sanctions.Rosatom and Framatome’s joint manufacturing of nuclear fuel in Lingen presents a wide range of risks for Germany and Europe. The incoming German coalition government must make a final decision and swiftly deny the permission for a Framatome-Rosatom cooperation.11 rod-factory-conversion12 13 1.704330014 russian-nuclear-fuel-a87489