Greenpeace said on Saturday that the French nuclear industry was “under the influence” of Russia, which according to the NGO controls more than 40% of imports of natural uranium from Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, and a third of those of enriched uranium.
Rosatom’s weight
In 2022, the year of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, “almost half of the natural uranium imported into France came from Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan”, 43% exactly, Greenpeace stresses in a report published two days before the start of the Assembly review. National. of a bill aimed at accelerating the construction of new nuclear reactors.
However, according to the NGO, “virtually all of Kazakhstan’s natural uranium, and a considerable part of Uzbekistan’s, passes through the hands of (Russian civilian nuclear monopoly, editor’s note) Rosatom, which controls the transportation of all nuclear materials. . in transit on Russian soil”, via rail convoys to the port of Saint Petersburg, and then cargo ships to France.
Routes that avoid Russian territory “do not currently represent real alternatives,” the report added. The 99-page text is based on public data (customs, company publications, public bodies, NGOs, think tanks and the media).
A “huge” dependency
Natural uranium, extracted from the mines, must be enriched to be used as fuel in nuclear power plants. France has a dedicated factory in Tricastin (Drôme), managed by Orano.
Greenpeace had already described as “scandalous” the continuation of nuclear trade with Russia, a sector that is not subject to international sanctions, unlike hydrocarbons.
The organization had noted in particular that France had received from Russia “a third of the enriched uranium necessary for the operation of French nuclear power plants for one year”, tripling by 2022 according to it.
“Contrary to what defenders of the atom claim, the dependence of the French nuclear sector on the Russian authorities is immense, which could explain why France continues to actively oppose sanctions against Rosatom at the European level,” Greenpeace said on Saturday. .
Contacted on Saturday morning, neither the Ministry of Energy Transition, nor EDF, nor Orano reacted immediately.
On Friday, Marine Tondelier, national secretary of the EELV, indicated that the environmental party was going “on the offensive on the issue.” Yannick Jadot MEP called for an “enlightened debate” and “more education”. On Monday the bill to accelerate the construction of new reactors arrives in the Assembly.
Source: BFM TV
