The nuclear fuel plant in the German city of Lingen should not begin producing fuel assemblies under a Russian licence for customers in Bulgaria and four other European countries, Lower Saxony Environment Minister Christian Meyer said Wednesday, as quoted by Reuters.
Advanced Nuclear Fuels (ANF), a subsidiary of French company Framatome, plans to produce fuel assemblies for Russian-designed reactors under a licence from TVEL, the nuclear fuel division of Russian state-owned corporation Rosatom. Meyer’s ministry is responsible for licensing and supervising the plant, and he criticized Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s government for not doing more to stop the project.
The Federal Environment Ministry also opposed cooperation with Rosatom, saying the issue should be addressed through EU-wide sanctions, including against the nuclear sector. A ministry spokesperson noted that a majority of EU Member States have so far not supported such measures.
Framatome said it had received final confirmation of the extension of its production licence in Lingen. The facility will be adapted to produce fuel assemblies for customers in Bulgaria, Czechia, Hungary, Slovakia and Finland.
German environmental group BUND said it would seek a court order to temporarily suspend the permit pending its complaint against the project, citing security concerns over Rosatom’s involvement. Rosatom said it was not involved in the court proceedings and that the Lingen plant was not owned by the Russian corporation.
The permit to expand production was issued in July. Lower Saxony authorities said at the time that, despite their political objections, they had no legal grounds to reject it.
Bulgaria’s Kozloduy Nuclear Power Plant and Framatome signed an agreement in December 2022 for the supply of fresh nuclear fuel for Unit 6 as part of efforts to diversify supplies.
Lower Saxony Minister Opposes Nuclear Fuel Production for Bulgaria at Lingen 2026 THE NEWS FROM BULGARIA – NEWS AGENCY 2009-2025 2026-10-07 14:55:15
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