Ukraine is trying to diversify sources of nuclear fuel supplies / Photo from UNIAN
Russia was the major supplier of nuclear fuel to Ukraine.
Ukraine in 2019 imported fuel assemblies for its nuclear power plants to the tune of US$396.889 million.
Over the period under review, Russia supplied 263 tonnes of nuclear fuel worth US$240.91 million (60.6% in the total structure of procurement) and Sweden sold 211.43 tonnes worth US$155.98 million (39.3%), according to the State Statistics Service.
Read alsoEnergoatom generates 7.8 bln kWh of electricity in Jan 2020
As UNIAN reported earlier, to diversify sources of nuclear fuel supplies for its nuclear power plants and reduce dependence on a single source, which is Russia's TVEL, Ukraine's state-owned Energoatom in April 2014 signed a contract with Westinghouse, which produces fuel at its plant in Sweden.
In late January 2018, Energoatom and Westinghouse extended the contract until 2025.
Swedish fuel is currently used at Zaporizhia and Yuzhnoukrainsk nuclear power plants.
In 2018, some 335.2 tonnes of nuclear fuel worth US$374.2 million arrived from Russia (71.6% in the total structure of procurements) and 211.4 tonnes worth US$148.5 million from Sweden (28.4%), according to the State Statistics Service.
In 2017, nuclear fuel worth US$368.9 million was purchased in Russia (69.2% in the total structure of procurement), while Ukraine bought fuel worth US$164.5 million in Sweden (30.8%).
UNIAN memo. Energoatom is Ukraine's largest electricity producer, accounting for about 50% of the country's overall power output. Energoatom is responsible for the safe operation of the country's nuclear power plants.
Ukraine ranks seventh globally in terms of the installed capacity of its nuclear power generating units. Energoatom operates four nuclear power plants across Ukraine with a total of 15 power generating units, all with VVER-type reactors. Zaporizhia nuclear power plant, operating six power units with a total capacity of 6 GW, is Europe's largest.