Russia
State Atomic Energy Cooperation Rosatom
This page is part of the Facilities Collection.
The State Atomic Energy Corporation, Rosatom, is the central holding company for Russia’s entire nuclear energy complex. The creation of this state corporation in 2008 from a federal agency, which itself was the product of the consolidation of several ministries, represented the first step in the privatization of Russia’s nuclear industry. The nature of Rosatom as a state enterprise provides broad powers not afforded to a typical corporation, and allows Rosatom input on treaty enforcement. 1 Rosatom also develops suggestions for state policy on atomic energy use. In addition to standard duties of physical protection and accounting of materials, the corporation is responsible for carrying out state control over the safety of radiological installations and storage sites, nuclear materials transport, and for taking measures to warn of emergency situations.
Rosatom currently incorporates 288 distinct enterprises and scientific institutions in Russia, spanning the entirety of the nuclear energy complex. Rosatom consists of five branches: the nuclear energy complex; the nuclear and radiation safety and security sector; the nuclear powered icebreaker fleet; the nuclear weapons complex (including development and decommissioning activities inherited from the Ministry of Defense); and research and development within the pure and applied sciences. 2
Major subsidiaries of Rosatom include JSC Atomenergoprom, Rosenergoatom Concern, TVEL Fuel Company, JSC Techsnabexport “TENEX,” JSC Atomstroyexport, JSC Atomredmetzoloto, NSC SPAEP (St. Petersburg), JSC Atomenergoproekt (Moscow), and RosRAO. 3
Rosatom continues to expand globally, establishing offices in Europe, Africa, and Southeast Asia. 4 One of Rosatom’s most infamous export projects, due to the associated proliferation concerns, has been the development of the Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant in Iran. 5 In addition to foreign business investments, Rosatom has been tasked by the Russian government with developing a forum for international engagement on contemporary nuclear-related issues. 6 7
Glossary
- Nuclear energy
- Nuclear energy: The energy liberated by a nuclear reaction (fission or fusion), or by radioactive decay.
- Radioactivity
- Radioactivity: The spontaneous emission of radiation, generally alpha or beta particles, often accompanied by gamma rays, from the nucleus of an unstable isotope.
- Proliferation (of weapons of mass destruction)
- The spread of biological, chemical, and/or nuclear weapons, and their delivery systems. Horizontal proliferation refers to the spread of WMD to states that have not previously possessed them. Vertical proliferation refers to an increase in the quantity or capabilities of existing WMD arsenals within a state.
Sources
- William E. Butler, “Treaty Capacity and the Russian State Corporation,” The American Journal of International Law, pp. 310-315.
- Annual Public Report, Государственная корпорация по атомной энергии «Росатом» State Atomic Energy Cooperation Rosatom, December 2010.
- “Государственная корпорация по атомной энергии «Росатом»” Rosatom State Nuclear Energy Corporation, www.rosatom.ru.
- “New marketing office of ROSATOM registered in Hungary,” ITAR-TASS, 3 November 2012, www.lexisnexis.com.
- B. Smedts, “Iran’s Nuclear Programme: Civil and/or Military Goals?” Defense & Security Analysis, vol. 28 no. 3, 2012.
- “Russian Official Expects Iran Nuclear Plant Commissioning by Mid-2013,” BBC Monitoring Former Soviet Union - Political Supplied by BBC Worldwide Monitoring, 24 December 2012, www.lexisnexis.com.
- “RF Government Instructs ROSATOM to Organize an International Conference on Atomic Energy in 21st Century in 2013,” ITAR-TASS, 18 December 2012, www.lexisnexis.com.