How Belgium will detach itself from Russian uranium
Between direct supplies and intermediaries, Belgium is extremely dependent on Russia for uranium from nuclear power plants. However, the country wants to cut off relations. All the details
The European Union is deeply dependent for energy on Russia, from which it imports around 30% of crude oil, 40% of natural gas and 50% of coal. Dependence, in reality, goes far beyond fossil fuels: just think that the nuclear industry of Belgium is very close to Moscow for uranium, the main fuel of the reactors.
40 PERCENT OF BELGIUM'S URANIUM COMES FROM RUSSIA
20 percent of the uranium that Belgium buys from abroad comes from Russia; another 19.7 per cent comes from Kazakhstan, but still passes through the intermediation of a Russian company.
A NEW (LAST) LOAD IN MAY
In May, the Belgian company Synatom, which supplies fuel to the Doel and Tihange nuclear power plants, will receive a new shipment of uranium from Rosatom, the Russian state-owned nuclear company.
It will be the last: the Belgian Minister of Energy Tinne Van der Straeten, of the environmentalist party Groen said, recalling how Synatom has exhausted its contractual obligations with Rosatom and its subsidiaries. "The uranium that comes from Kazakhstan", said the minister, "is purchased by Uranium One, a subsidiary of Rosatom".
"CUT ALL TIES"
Samuel Cogalati, a Belgian politician in the ecological area, said that “cultivating our ties with Rosatom, even in the civil sphere, is equivalent to financing and strengthening Putin's military nuclear arsenal. This madness has to stop, ”he added. "If we want to protect the European continent from the Russian nuclear danger, we must cut all ties with Rosatom and imports of Russian nuclear fuel."
HOW MUCH URANIUM CONSUMES BELGIUM
Belgium's two nuclear power plants use 1,000 tons of uranium every year, according to data from Synatom.
As the Brussels Times recalls, the country had initially decided to dismantle its reactors by 2025. But the energy crisis exacerbated by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which threatens to leave Europe without enough gas for heating and electricity generation, it has strengthened the role of nuclear power in meeting the needs of citizens and businesses.
WHAT HAPPENS BETWEEN PARLIAMENT AND THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION
Last month, several MEPs proposed a complete ban on imports of oil, coal, gas and nuclear fuel from Russia. To date, the European Commission has imposed a freeze on coal purchases and is considering proceeding in the same way with oil . At the moment, Brussels has not included uranium in the sanctions against Moscow.
EUROPEAN DEPENDENCE ON URIUM FROM RUSSIA
According to the latest report from the EURATOM supply agency, 20.2 per cent of European uranium imports come from Russia, and 24 per cent of supplies go to Rosatom (as in the case of Kazakh uranium for Belgium). .
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/energia/uranio-belgio-russia/ on Tue, 10 May 2022 05:18:57 +0000.