Rosatom is working with Armenian partners on the Nairit project, related to the liquidation of the legacy of the synthetic rubber plant in Yerevan. This was announced by the CEO of the state corporation Alexey Likhachev to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
According to Likhachev, Rosatom controls the handling of industrial waste of the 1st (lamps, thermometers, chemical reagents) and 2nd hazard classes (batteries with electrolyte, pesticides). Enterprises within the state corporation's perimeter are engaged in dismantling decommissioned enterprises and liquidating hazardous waste. This includes the Baikal Pulp and Paper Mill (frozen in 2013), as well as the Krasny Bor landfill, he added.
But also, the trends of the last year and a half are entering foreign sites in Kyrgyzstan, in Belarus, we are working with Armenian partners on the Nairit project. I hope, perhaps, we will also be able to provide assistance.
Nairit began producing chloroprene rubber in 1940. In the 1980s, the enterprise produced about 75–80 thousand tons of chloroprene rubber per year and manufactured other chemical products, including liquid chlorine, caustic soda, and hydrochloric acid.
Nairit was finally shut down in 2010. In 2025, the Armenian government approved the preparation of an environmental rehabilitation and restoration program for the enterprise's territory with the support of the World Bank. As part of the preparatory phase, Armenia received a grant of 1.5 million dollars for program development, technical assessments, and measures to neutralize equipment and chemical waste.
Rosatom also continues work at the Armenian Nuclear Power Plant as part of extending its operational life until 2036. Likhachev added that the Armenian leadership must make a further decision on the future of the plant.
Earlier, Rosatom Service and the Armenian Nuclear Power Plant signed an agreement to extend the plant's operational life until 2036. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan also allowed for a further extension until 2046.
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