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| Science & Technology |
| Russia's Rosatom in advanced talks with Egypt, Togo, Namibia and Tanzania on floating nuclear power plants |
| 2026-10-29 |
| [intellinews] Russia’s state nuclear corporation Rosatom says it is in advanced talks with Egypt, Togo, Namibia and Tanzania to supply floating nuclear power plants, although no construction contracts, financing agreements or deployment schedules have been announced. Rosatom Chief Executive Alexei Likhachev identified the four countries on October 28 at the Russia–Africa Summit in Moscow, Reuters reported. He said a meeting between the Russian and Egyptian presidents the same day could improve prospects in Egypt. The company is proposing power purchase agreements (PPAs) under which it would supply electricity from floating nuclear facilities. Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said before the summit that Vladimir Putin would hold 24 bilateral meetings with African leaders during the summit and the Gas Exporting Countries Forum, and put Russia–Africa trade at more than $27bn in 2025. Mali said ahead of the gathering that it would press Moscow to fast-track a feasibility study with Rosatom for a nuclear power plant. Vladimir Aptekarev, deputy head of Rosatom’s machine-building division, said each floating unit would generate approximately 100MW using RITM-200M reactors adapted for warmer climates. The vessels would be towed to coastal locations, with servicing and refuelling carried out in Russia. Aptekarev said the units could operate for up to 60 years and described a floating unit as “a good entry point” for countries seeking nuclear capability. He said 38 African countries had coastlines suitable for hosting a floating unit, although no country-specific site assessments were disclosed. Rosatom already has interests in two of the four countries. Namibia, the world’s third-largest producer of uranium oxide, discussed joint work on uranium deposits and preparations for a framework intergovernmental agreement on peaceful nuclear energy with Rosatom in January. In Tanzania, Rosatom subsidiary Mantra Tanzania is developing the Mkuju River uranium project, which the government reaffirmed its support for after President Samia Suluhu Hassan’s state visit to Russia in June. Rosatom separately signed a memorandum of understanding with Togo’s Energy Ministry on October 28 covering nuclear power and non-power applications. The memorandum, signed by Likhachev and Robert Koffi Messan Eklo, Togo’s minister delegate for energy, sets up working groups to assess project opportunities, develop skills and build public support for nuclear power, but contains no construction commitment. Likhachev described floating power units as one promising area for cooperation. The Russian group is already building Egypt’s El Dabaa nuclear power station, comprising four 1,200MW VVER-1200 reactors with combined generating capacity of 4,800MW. Once operational, it would become Africa’s second commercial nuclear power station after South Africa’s Koeberg facility. Initial fuel delivery for Unit 1 is scheduled for 2027, with grid connection targeted for 2028, and Rosatom is in talks to add two more units that would lift capacity to 7.2GW. The project has also drawn complaints from the client. In a letter sent in June and reported by Politico in August, Egypt’s Nuclear Power Plants Authority alleged defects in the foundation slabs of Units 1, 2 and 3 and problems with concrete structures at Unit 4. Rosatom operates the Akademik Lomonosov floating nuclear power station in Russia’s Chukotka region, commissioned in 2020 and currently the world’s only operating floating nuclear plant. It uses older KLT-40S reactors rather than the RITM-200M design proposed for Africa. Rosatom is also building four floating units to power a copper mining hub in Chukotka. On October 16, Rosatom signed an electricity supply agreement with Indonesia’s PT Pembangkit Listrik Nuklir for two proposed floating units totalling 200MW off northern Halmahera Island in North Maluku. Rosatom expects first power about five years after the contract’s key terms take effect, and no comparable deployment agreement has been announced with the four African countries. Under Rosatom’s model, the floating units remain under its ownership and operation, and customers pay for the electricity they use. Built-in social hostages. |
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