The United States has sensitive nuclear technology at a nuclear power plant in Ukraine and is warning Russia against tampering with that technology, according to a letter the U.S. Department of Energy sent last month to Russia’s state-owned Rosatom.
In the letter, which was reviewed by CNN and is dated March 17, 2023, the director of the Energy Ministry’s Office of Nonproliferation Policy, Andrea Ferkile, tells Rosatom’s director general that the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in Enerhodar, Ukraine, “contains nuclear technical data of U.S. origin, the export of which is controlled by the United States government.”
Goods, software, and technology are subject to U.S. export controls when there is a potential for them to be used in a manner that is detrimental to U.S. national security interests.
The Energy Ministry’s letter comes as Russian forces continue to control the plant, Europe’s largest nuclear power plant, located in part of the Zaporozhye region that Russia occupied after its invasion of Ukraine last February. The plant has been frequently disconnected from the Ukrainian power grid due to heavy Russian shelling in the region, raising fears of a nuclear accident across Europe.
Although the plant is still physically operated by Ukrainian personnel, it is managed by Rosatom. The Energy Ministry warned Rosatom in a letter that it was “illegal” for any Russian citizen or entity to handle American technology.
CNN has contacted Rosatom for comment.
It is unclear whether Rosatom responded to the letter. The National Nuclear Security Administration, which is part of the Energy Ministry, told CNN in a statement that the letter was authentic.
The letters were first reported by RBC Ukraine news agency.
“The Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration can confirm that the letter is legitimate,” said Shayela Hassan, deputy director for public affairs for the National Nuclear Security Administration.
She added: “The Secretary of Energy has statutory responsibility for authorizing the transfer of unclassified civilian nuclear technology and assistance to foreign nuclear activities. DOE does not comment on regulatory activities.”
Another letter from Ferkile to the Department of Energy inspector general, reviewed by CNN and dated October 24, 2022, describes the technology the United States exported to Ukraine for use in the Zaporizhzhia plant and reiterates that the department has “no record of any current authorization to transfer this technology and technical data to any Russian national or entity.”
The Department of Energy’s Office of Nuclear Energy publicly announced U.S. support for the plant, stating on its website in June 2021 that “the United States has helped implement new procedures and maintenance operations at the reactor that are expected to ultimately strengthen energy security” in Ukraine.
Correction: This article incorrectly describes the news agency that first reported the news: RBC Ukraine.
