Russian Uranium Fuels Swiss Nuclear Plants: Greenpeace

2026-05-28 04:10:16

(MENAFN- Swissinfo) More than four years after the start of the war in Ukraine, Swiss nuclear power plants are still heavily dependent on Russia for the supply of uranium, according to Greenpeace. Select your language

Generated with artificial intelligence. Listening: Russian uranium fuels Swiss nuclear plants: Greenpeace This content was published on May 28, 2026 - 06:40 4 minutes Keystone-SDA

Deutsch de Schweizer Atomenergie laut Greenpeace weiter von Russland abhängig Original Read more: Schweizer Atomenergie laut Greenpeace weiter von Russland abha

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Replacing Russian uranium with supplies from Kazakhstan is not enough to cut this dependency, says the environmental NGO.

Swiss energy company Axpo has announced a partnership last year with Kazatomprom, the leading Kazakh company in the uranium sector.

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Until now, Axpo has sourced all of the fuel for the two reactors at its Beznau power plant from Russia and half of the fuel for its reactor in Leibstadt.

Even if the mining locations change, the Russian company Rosatom remains indispensable, said Greenpeace. This is because the majority of the uranium mined in Kazakh mines is exported via a route through Russia that ends in St Petersburg. There it is loaded onto Russian ships and transported to European harbours.

The international trans-Caspian transport route – which runs from southeast Asia to Europe – could be an alternative, but has logistical shortcomings and is also exposed to considerable geopolitical risks, according to Greenpeace.
No traceability
Uranium is also completely untraceable. It is interchangeable and is mixed from different sources in the enrichment process. Several of Axpo's suppliers process uranium supplied by Rosatom.
More More Kazakhstan to supply Swiss nuclear power plants with uranium
This content was published on Feb 17, 2025 Kazakhstan, the world's leading producer of uranium, is for the first time to supply Swiss nuclear power plants.
Read more: Kazakhstan to supply Swiss nuclear power plants with ur

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