The U.S. ban on import of enriched uranium from Russia is destructive to the sustainable functioning of the world market of nuclear materials and will negatively affect the situation in the nuclear energy industry in countries that make such non-market decisions. This is stated in a comment of Rosatom, distributed by the press service of the state corporation.
"Rosatom State Corporation" is familiar with the approval by the US Congress of a bill to introduce a ban on the import of enriched uranium from Russia. It is obvious that such initiatives, which have a clear political overtone, are disruptive to the sustainable functioning of the global nuclear fuel cycle (NFC) goods and services market and will ultimately negatively affect the situation in the nuclear power industry in countries that making such non-market decisions”, the document says.
The main principle by which Rosatom has been guided for decades, supplying enriched uranium to the operators of foreign nuclear power plants, is that the political situation should not destabilize the market, the commentary emphasizes. “That is why our priorities in international activity remain the observance and fulfillment of contractual obligations, as well as the maintenance of partnership relations with our clients. Our strategy also envisages the widest possible geographic diversification of the supply of uranium products to foreign customers interested in cooperation with us”, Rosatom said in a statement.
The state corporation believes that in the current conditions of global energy transition, the dynamic growth of the demand for goods and services from the nuclear fuel cycle, international cooperation under mutually beneficial and transparent market conditions, a pragmatic and balanced approach is crucial for the implementation of ambitious programs for the development of nuclear production.< /span>
The US Senate on April 30 approved a bill banning the import of enriched uranium from Russia. However, in exceptional cases, in the absence of alternative sources of uranium to keep US reactors running, or if such purchases are in the “national interest”, the law allows purchases to continue until January 2028. The document also imposes obligations on the Department of Energy to seek and provide Congress with options for replacing uranium supplies from the Russian Federation.