# Rosatom
> Russia's state nuclear corporation is the world's largest exporter of reactor technology, holding a $200bn-plus foreign order book across 10 countries despite Western sanctions.

**Meta:** type: reference · date: 2026-07-03 · heads:  · 4 takes · 3 lenses · 3 regions

## What it is

Rosatom is Russia's state-owned nuclear energy corporation, established by federal law in 2007 to consolidate the country's civil nuclear assets under a single holding. It operates across the full nuclear fuel cycle: uranium mining and conversion, enrichment, fuel fabrication, reactor construction, power generation, and waste management. As of mid-2026, the corporation comprises more than 450 enterprises and roughly 350,000 employees. It supplies about 20% of Russia's electricity from 35 operating reactors across 11 plants, and runs the world's only fleet of nuclear-powered icebreakers, which keep Arctic shipping lanes open year-round. Director General Alexei Likhachev has led the corporation since 2016.

## History

The Soviet legacy behind Rosatom reaches back to the 1940s atomic programme. The civilian side was reorganised multiple times before the 2007 law created the current state corporation form, giving it both commercial freedom and a mandate to carry Russia's international nuclear commitments, including non-proliferation obligations. By the 2010s, Rosatom had displaced Westinghouse and Areva as the dominant global exporter of reactor construction contracts, signing deals across the Middle East, South Asia, and Africa. Its flagship export model, the VVER-1200 reactor with a "build-own-operate" financing structure, lets client governments take reactors without bearing the full upfront capital risk, which proved decisive in markets where project finance was scarce.

## Current state

As of mid-2026, Rosatom is building 22 power units simultaneously inside Russia and abroad, holding a foreign order book formally valued at roughly US$200 billion across 39 units in 10 countries. Four foreign units are targeted for commissioning in 2026: Rooppur Unit 1 in Bangladesh, Akkuyu Unit 1 in Turkey, and two units at Chinese plants Tianwan and Xudapu. The Paks II project in Hungary poured first concrete in February 2026 after being removed from Western sanctions lists, marking a partial thaw in European exposure to Rosatom contracts.

Sanctions pressure has bitten the revenue line. Rosatom's foreign revenues fell to approximately US$16.5 billion in 2025, down from more than US$18 billion in 2024, the first decline in several years. China absorbed much of the displaced volume, dramatically expanding Russian enriched uranium purchases to record levels in 2025, but at significantly discounted prices. Rosatom controls roughly 40% of global uranium enrichment capacity, giving Western utilities limited short-run alternatives, though the US government has committed US$2.7 billion to rebuild domestic enrichment capacity.

## Relationships

Rosatom's closest commercial relationships are with countries that cannot access Western financing or technology: Russia signed nuclear cooperation agreements with more than 60 states. Turkey's [Akkuyu plant](/ko/n/rosatom-foreign-fleet-2026) is the most politically visible project, combining a NATO member client with Russian construction and a build-own-operate ownership structure that keeps Rosatom's equity on Turkish soil indefinitely. In Kazakhstan, Rosatom is part of an international consortium for the proposed Balkhash plant, competing and co-operating alongside Chinese and South Korean firms. Kazatomprom, the world's largest uranium producer, supplies much of Rosatom's fuel feedstock and the two companies coordinate on enrichment pricing.

## What to watch

Four tests will define Rosatom's trajectory through 2026 and 2027. First, whether the Rooppur and Akkuyu units actually achieve commercial operation on their stated schedules, delayed multiple times already by financing and equipment bottlenecks. Second, whether Western clients, particularly in Eastern Europe, accelerate fuel diversification away from Russian VVER fuel assemblies, reducing Rosatom's recurring revenue even from plants already built. Third, whether the Hungary Paks II carve-out from EU sanctions holds politically as the broader Ukraine war status shifts. Fourth, whether the US and European enrichment investment programmes reach commercial scale fast enough to give utilities a genuine switching option before existing contracts expire around 2028 to 2030.

## Regional takes (batched by bias / lens)

### official record
- **Rosatom State Atomic Energy Corporation** (Russia, en) — Rosatom's official about page covering structure, mission, fleet scale (450-plus enterprises, 350,000 employees) and role in Russia's electricity mix.
  Source: https://www.rosatom.ru/en/about-us/
- **Rosatom Key Operating Results 2023 (annual report PDF)** (Russia, en) — Rosatom's official 2023 results document with financial and operational data on domestic generation, export revenues, and foreign-build pipeline.
  Source: https://www.report.rosatom.ru/go_eng/go_rosatom_eng_2023/rosatom_key_2023_eng.pdf

### nuclear-industry trade
- **World Nuclear News** (United Kingdom, en) — Reports Rosatom director general Likhachev confirming four foreign units (Rooppur, Akkuyu, Tianwan-7, Xudapu-3) targeted for 2026 commissioning.
  Source: https://www.world-nuclear-news.org/articles/rosatom-hopes-for-four-foreign-unit-start-ups-in-2026

### watchdog analysis
- **Bellona Foundation** (Norway, en) — Documents Rosatom's 2025 export revenue fall to US$16.5bn from US$18bn-plus, China absorbing displaced Western market share at discounted prices.
  Source: https://bellona.org/news/nuclear-issues/2026-03-rosatoms-exports-slip-china-buys-up-russian-fuel-and-the-us-boosts-enrichment-the-new-nuclear-digest-is-out

## Across the graph
- Related: [[rosatom-foreign-fleet-2026]]
- Entities: Commodity:rosatom, Russia, Akkuyu, Rooppur, Commodity:kazatomprom

---
Canonical: https://rbtfl.xyz/ko/n/rosatom-dossier