Anna Hartz
As tensions over the war in Ukraine continue, questions are rising about how countries deal with Russia. One controversial issue is France’s uranium trade.
Greenpeace reported on Sunday that France is sending reprocessed uranium to Russia for treatment so it can be reused. The shipments are legal but have drawn criticism for being “immoral,” especially since many countries are trying to tighten sanctions against Russia.
“Not Illegal, but Immoral”
On Saturday, Greenpeace members filmed about 10 containers marked with radioactive labels being loaded onto a cargo ship in Dunkirk, reports Digi24. The Panama-registered ship, Mikhail Dudin, regularly transports enriched or natural uranium from France to St. Petersburg. But this shipment was the first reprocessed uranium shipment Greenpeace has observed in three years.
Pauline Boyer, head of Greenpeace France’s nuclear campaign, said France should end contracts with Rosatom, Russia’s state-owned nuclear company. She noted that Rosatom has controlled the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant in Ukraine for three years. “It’s not illegal, but it’s immoral,” Boyer said.
The trade stems from a €600 million ($700 million) deal signed in 2018 between France’s EDF, a state-controlled energy giant, and Tenex, a Rosatom subsidiary. The deal allows Russia to recycle spent uranium and convert it into re-enriched uranium. Rosatom’s facility in Seversk, Siberia, is the only plant in the world capable of this process.
Rising Uranium Prices
Reprocessed uranium can be reused, which is appealing as uranium prices rise. However, only about 10% of the uranium sent back to France is used at the Cruas nuclear power plant in the south, the only plant that can use re-enriched uranium, Greenpeace said.
France initially ordered EDF to stop uranium trade with Rosatom in 2022 after Greenpeace revealed the contracts. The French government later said in March 2024 that it was considering building its own conversion facility to produce reprocessed enriched uranium domestically.
EDF and the French Energy Ministry did not respond to AFP questions about the recent shipment or ongoing uranium trade.
The controversy raises broader questions about the balance between legal trade and ethical responsibility, especially when international conflicts are ongoing. Critics say continuing uranium shipments to Russia while the country wages war in Ukraine undermines global sanctions and sends a troubling message about priorities in energy policy.
Sources: Greenpeace, Digi24
This article is made and published by Anna Hartz, who may have used AI in the preparation
