State Atomic Energy Corporation Rosatom (commonly referred to as Rosatom Росатом), also known as Rosatom State Nuclear Energy Corporation,, or Rosatom State Corporation, is a Russian state corporation headquartered in Moscow that specializes in nuclear energy, nuclear non-energy goods and high-tech products.[4] It was established in 2007 and comprises more than 350 enterprises, including scientific research organizations, a nuclear weapons complex, and the world's only nuclear icebreaker fleet.[5]
The organization is the largest electricity generating company in Russia, producing 217.4 TWh of electricity, 20.28% of the country's total electricity production. The corporation ranks first in overseas nuclear power plant construction, responsible for 90% of global nuclear technology exports: 22 nuclear power plant units, at different stages of development, in 7 countries, as of December 2024.[6] Rosatom also manufactures equipment, produces isotopes for nuclear medicine, carries out research, and conducts material studies. It also produces supercomputers and software as well as different nuclear and non-nuclear products. Rosatom plans to further develop renewable energy and wind power. Four nuclear power plants are being built in Russia: The Kursk NPP-2 project includes four power units with Russian VVER-TOI reactor installations. Power Units No. 7 and No. 8 of the Leningrad NPP-2, equipped with VVER-1200 reactors, are being constructed to replace Power Units No. 3 and No. 4 with RBMK-1000 reactors. The Smolensk NPP-2 is a station designed to replace the retiring capacities of the operating units of the Smolensk NPP. The construction of Power Units No. 1 and No. 2 of the Smolensk NPP-2 is planned under the General Scheme for the Placement of Electric Power Facilities until 2035.[7] Rosatom has a 38% world market share and in 2019 led in global uranium enrichment services (36%) and covers 17% of the global nuclear fuel market.[8][9][10][11]
The state corporation is authorized on behalf of the state to fulfill Russia's international obligations in the field of the use of nuclear energy and of non-proliferation of nuclear materials.[4] Rosatom is also involved with large-scale projects such as ITER and FAIR.
As of February 2021, the total portfolio orders of Rosatom reached $250 billion.[12][13] According to the 2023 corporate report, its 10-year foreign order portfolio stood at $127.1 billion, while revenue reached $16.2 billion. The 10-year order portfolio for new products stood at ₽1,110.1 billion while revenue reached ₽261.1 billion.[14][15][16]
Certain divisions and business lines of Rosatom were reoriented during wartime toward tasks directly or indirectly connected with military needs: the production of components and services demanded by the Ministry of Defense, increased involvement in projects of geopolitical significance, as well as the reinforcement of internal financial flows through areas “untypical” for the civilian nuclear sector.[17]
The involvement of Rosatom in military and paramilitary operations increases systemic nuclear security risks — from uncontrolled changes in the operation of nuclear power plants to threats during the transportation and storage of nuclear fuel and radioactive waste.[18]
History
Origins and establishment
Several Soviet and Russian government entities with different tasks are among the Rosatom predecessors.[4] On 26 June 1953, the Council of Ministers transformed the First Main Directorate in charge of nuclear weapons program into the Ministry of Medium Machine Building (MinSredMash). The ministry was entrusted with the development of the civic nuclear power program. In 1989, Minsredmash and the Ministry of Atomic Energy merged to form the Ministry of Nuclear Engineering and Industry of the USSR.[19][20]
The Ministry for Atomic Energy of the Russian Federation [(Russian: Министерство по атомной энергии Российской Федерации, also known as Minatom (Russian: Минaтом)] was established as a successor to the Russian part of the Ministry of Nuclear Engineering and Industry of the USSR on 29 January 1992, after the dissolution of the Soviet Union
Organization
As of early 2021, Rosatom included 356 of various organizational and legal forms. Some belong to the enterprises of the nuclear power complex, which comprises organizations of nuclear energy, nuclear engineering, and the nuclear fuel cycle, such as enterprises for the exploration and production of natural uranium, conversion and enrichment of uranium, production of nuclear fuel, electricity and equipment, development of new technologies for the nuclear fuel and gas centrifuge platform.[35] Others belong to the growing number of new businesses outside of nuclear power, including wind energy, composite materials, additive technologies, and nuclear medicine, among others. The civilian assets of the Russian nuclear industry are concentrated within Rosatom's holding company Atomenergoprom, which unites 222 enterprises as of December 2020.[14][49][50]
The Rosatom companies are integrated into multiple divisions:[14]
Operations
Nuclear power plants
The management company Rosenergoatom operates all of Russia's nuclear power plants and represents the electric power division of the state corporation Rosatom. As of December 2022, 35 nuclear power plant units and one floating nuclear heat and power plant unit with a total installed capacity of 29.6 GW are in operation. The total electricity generation by nuclear power plants in 2022 amounted to 223.4 billion kWh.[60]
In operation
As a result of reforms and reassignments in the period from 2012 to 2014, Rosatom's engineering activities were concentrated within the management company Atomenergoproekt-Atomstroyexport (NIAEP-ASE), based in Nizhny Novgorod. Earlier, Atomstroyexport was engaged in foreign construction, and a number of independent engineering institutes with the name Atomenergoproekt were engaged in the design and construction of facilities in Russia: Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Nizhny Novgorod. Since October 2014 on the basis of NIAEP-ASE, Rosatom forms a unified engineering division, not including design company on nuclear power facilities and technologies Atomproekt.
Corporate governance
Supervisory Board
The highest executive body of Rosatom is the supervisory board, consisting of nine people, including the chairman. The board is headed since 2005 by chairman Sergey Kiriyenko. Other Board members are:[113]
- Igor Borovkov - the head of the apparatus of the Military-Industrial Commission
- Larisa Brychyova- Assistant to the President of Russia
- Alexey Likhachev - General Director of Rosatom
- Andrei Klepach - Deputy Minister for Economic Development
- Sergey Korolev - Director for Economic Security of the Federal Security Service
- Alexander Novak - Minister of Energy of Russia
See also
- Energy policy of Russia
- Nuclear power in Russia
- Atomenergoprom, civil nuclear activities including Tekhsnabexport (fuel/uranium exporter), Rosenergoatom
- Ministry of Medium Machine Building of the USSR, Soviet ministry in charge of civil nuclear activities in the USSR
- Institute for Theoretical and Experimental Physics
- Institute for High Energy Physics
- List of companies of Russia
- Uranium One controversy
- Companies similar to Rosatom
- Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power
- Mitsubishi Heavy Industries