Germany has allowed the organization of nuclear fuel production using Russian technology for nuclear power plants of Soviet and Russian design. The corresponding permit was issued by the Ministry of Environment of the federal state of Lower Saxony, approving the expansion of the Advanced Nuclear Fuels GmbH (ANF) plant in Lingen.

After modernization, the plant, owned by the French company Framatome, will be able to produce hexagonal fuel assemblies compatible with Russian-designed reactors. This fuel is intended for operation at nuclear power plants built according to Soviet and Russian designs.

At the same time, the German regulator set a number of mandatory conditions. Representatives of TVEL and Rosatom companies are prohibited from being on the territory of the enterprise. All equipment and software supplied from Russia must undergo independent verification, and the digital systems used must be isolated from the plant's main IT infrastructure. In addition, Russian-made fuel elements will undergo separate quality control.

The decision will allow the European enterprise to independently produce fuel assemblies for Russian-type reactors, maintaining technological compatibility with existing nuclear power plants.

There are still operating nuclear power plants in Europe with Russian-designed reactors that require compatible fuel, which was one of the reasons for the development of such assemblies at the ANF plant.