Russia confirms enriched uranium supplies to China
- The country is supplying fuel that is rich in the rare isotope uranium-235 to power two fast reactors in Fujian province, according to Russian state media
- US officials and members of Congress have previously expressed concern about the two countries’ nuclear cooperation, which could help China expand its arsenal
Russia has confirmed it is supplying highly enriched uranium to two Chinese reactors.
TVEL, a subsidiary of the state atomic energy corporation Rosatom, will be allowed to export the fuel to China over the next three years, Sputnik News reported on Wednesday.
It will be sent to the CFR-600 power plant at Xiapu in the southeastern province of Fujian. The project has two fast-neutron reactors, both with the capacity to produce 600 megawatts of power, the first of which is expected to connect to the grid later this year.
World Nuclear News reported in January that three batches of fuel had been transported by rail from TVEL to the plant since September.
However, Sputnik’s report revealed that the supplies are highly enriched uranium, with a concentration of just over 30 per cent of uranium-235 – which is found in less than 1 per cent of naturally occurring uranium.
Fast reactors require a concentration of over 20 per cent of uranium-235, while nuclear weapons usually contain about 90 per cent uranium-235 and plutonium.