Calls are growing for Western countries to sanction Russia's state nuclear energy company as fears persist of a disaster at the Zaporizhzia plant it controls in occupied Ukraine.

Ukraine has been calling for Rosatom to be included in sanctions since Russia's invasion last year but it has still not happened.

Now, in the face of the occupation of Zaporizhzhia nuclear power station (ZNPP) and repeated threats from Putin that he will use tactical nuclear weapons in Ukraine, politicians and campaigners are urging leaders to take action.

Ukraine's minister of energy Herman Halushchenko, who works with EU countries on the level of cooperation between the ministries of energy, told openDemocracy: "Taking into account what the Russians are doing with Ukrainian nuclear energy in Ukraine [at the moment], [the lack of sanctions] is nonsense."

Here's what you need to know.

What is Rosatom?

Rosatom is the central holding company for Russia's nuclear energy sector and oversees its nuclear weapons programme. It's also the world number one company for uranium enrichment, capturing 36% of the market. It supplies fuel to 78 power reactors in 15 countries (17% of the global nuclear fuel market).

In May, Hungary and Russia renegotiated their agreement on the completion of the Paks II plant - Hungary's first nuclear power station - and the construction of another one, with the approval of the EU.

Ukraine wants Rosatom to face sanctions for several reasons - not just because of its ongoing activities at ZNPP, but because it was allegedly involved in preparations for Russia's invasion of Ukraine, including plans to take control of the country's nuclear power plants.

"It's very clear Rosatom had a key role in the war planning. The actual involvement of Rosatom..., I think, is something that needs to be seriously investigated," Shaun Burnie, senior nuclear specialist with Greenpeace East Asia, said.

Rosatom is allegedly helping other Russian companies to circumvent sanctions. According to The Washington Post, in 2022 Rosatom purchased components, equipment and raw materials to support the production of weapons by sanctioned companies. Rosatom says this is false.

What is happening at Zaporizhzia nuclear power plant?

The Russian army occupied the Zaporizhzhia power station (ZNPP) in south-eastern Ukraine in March 2022. It is the largest in Europe with six reactors.

Rosatom took control of the plant six months later and then registered a new company in Moscow, the 'Zaporizhzhia NPP operating organisation', to manage it. This new company has been sanctioned by the US, Canada, the UK and Australia, but Rosatom has not.

After taking control of the plant, Russia appointed former deputy chief engineer Yuriy Chernichuk as its new director and several senior members of staff were forced to sign contracts with Rosatom. ZNPP's Ukrainian workers have been under constant physical and psychological pressure; some have been tortured by the Russian military; others have been coerced via threats against their relatives, incarcerated or forced to get Russian passports.

Others have simply been forced out. By the beginning of July, 6,000 out of the former 11,000 Ukrainian workers were still working at ZNPP, alongside 500 or so Russians, both soldiers and Rosatom personnel.

Five of the six reactors have been in 'cold shutdown' mode (meaning they are not generating electricity) since September last year, with one in 'hot shutdown'. But on Monday, according to Ukraine's state nuclear energy agency Energoatom, Rosatom workers switched reactor four from cold to hot shutdown - a violation of safety protocols.

Experts from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) have been conducting regular checks at ZNPP and a report this week said inspectors had seen anti-personnel mines at the edge of the site. They have still not been granted access to reactors three or four.

How does the West rely on Russia's nuclear sector?

Thanks to the restoration and improvement of the Soviet nuclear facilities it inherited, extensive uranium deposits (8% of global supply), a leading role in uranium conversion and enrichment and other technologies, Russia has a major role in the nuclear energy programmes of many countries.

"We have many problems when it comes to Rosatom. They are very present in the IAEA," German MEP Viola von Cramon told openDemocracy.

"They are the biggest supplier for nuclear power stations... even in the US. This is true for France, Hungary, Slovakia, for all the other central and eastern European countries. (...) But currently they are heavily dependent on Russian uranium, and that makes us very weak," she said.

According to Yanliang Pan, an expert in international nuclear energy commerce, "the EU is dependent on Russian conversion and enrichment services", while central European countries (and Ukraine, until last year's invasion), are dependent on "technologically specific fuel assemblies for VVER reactors that Rosatom fabricates for them".

Many EU countries are dependent on Russia's monopoly of specific nuclear fuels - NE 404 for instance. Halushchenko told openDemocracy that Ukraine and US firm Westinghouse are working on starting production of NE 404 next year.

"This will make it possible to replace Russian fuel for the [404] category of nuclear units."

EU countries also have contracts with Russia because places in Siberia are a dumping ground for depleted uranium, says Burnie from Greenpeace.

France, in particular, is entangled with Russia in many ways. According to Burnie, "the French nuclear programme is enormous. It produces enormous amounts of non-useful depleted uranium" - most of which is exported to Seversk in Russia.

Burnie added that the two countries have "a quite deep commercial relationship, decades of previous trade and decades into the future as well. I think that, together with other dimensions, makes it very difficult to see how the French state [could] intervene against itself to decide to agree to nuclear sanctions."

What's the situation with sanctions for Rosatom?

Ukraine has been calling on governments across the world to impose sanctions on Rosatom, and introduce measures to reduce cooperation with Russia on nuclear energy. But so far it hasn't had any effect.

"When we talk about sanctions [with EU ministers of energy], I always suggest setting a date or a time now [for when sanctions will start], (...) when everyone will be able to refuse Russian fuel," says minister Halushchenko.

In its latest package of sanctions, the European Commission threw out any action against Russia's nuclear sector, despite saying previously that it would target Rosatom.

"Is each and every state that could afford to pay a higher price and that could phase out [reliance on Russia] really keen to do it? Or they are just putting their head in the sand and waiting until this is over? I don't know. But it's obviously a very tricky question," said MEP Von Cramon.

The European Commission told openDemocracy that the matter of sanctions is confidential.

"All decisions on imposing new sanctions are made by EU member states in the council through unanimity and discussions are confidential, but nothing is off the table," a spokesperson added.

"Let's not forget that it is not only the EU adopting sanctions, there is a number of countries aligning with the EU sanctions or adopting similar national measures."

Greenpeace's Burne believes that "the view inside part of the European Commission is: OK, there is a war, but why should we disrupt a decades-long nuclear trade when, at some point, this war is going to end and we can go back to business?".

This view is backed up by the commission's recent greenlighting of Hungary's contract with Rosatom to build new nuclear reactors.

As for the UK and US, in May they did sanction Russia-linked companies in the energy and shipping sectors, including some associated with Rosatom.

"The war in Ukraine is impacting nuclear energy development from multiple angles," said researcher Pan. "One angle is the energy security angle, where the war exposed how unreliable Russian fossil fuels are. To diversify Russian fossil fuels, you need more nuclear as well as other sources of energy."

This is why Europe is switching to uranium conversion supplied by Cameco in Canada, by Orno in France, and soon by ConverDyn in the US.

"I don't see the necessity for compromise. For Ukrainians and for us who are not dependent on Russian uranium, I think we should ask for full sanctions and full isolation," Von Cramon told openDemocracy.

"This is what we were asked to do with Gazprom [Russia's state gas company]. I mean, we depended more than 55% on Russian gas and we survived. It was not easy, but we survived."

Halushchenko believes EU countries are "stalling" when it comes to sanctioning Rosatom. But he says this is "understandable" for a number of reasons, including construction of new power plants, cooperation [with Russia] in the field of uranium and nuclear fuel supply.

But Von Cramon said: "I think we have to translate this potential threat [of nuclear catastrophe at ZNPP] into deeds, into a proper communication, so that Putin understands he must not even think about using Zaporizhzhia as a potential tool or weapon - as he has done with the Kakhovka dam. I think the Western response to Russia blowing up the Kakhovka dam was much too soft."

From openDemocracy