TASS FACTBOX. On February 5, 2026, Rosatom CEO Alexey Likhachev and Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto gave a start to the first concrete pouring for the foundation of the Paks II Nuclear Power Plant (NPP), which is being built based on a Russian design. The TASS FACTBOX editorial team has prepared background information on Rosatom’s international nuclear projects.

History, order portfolio

The Soviet Union began constructing nuclear power plants abroad in the early 1960s. In October 1966, the first such facility was commissioned in the town of Rheinsberg in the GDR (now Germany; the plant was shut down in 1990). In the 1970s and early 1980s, the production associations Atomenergoexport and Zarubezhatomenergostroy were involved in building nuclear power plants in Bulgaria, Finland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Cuba, and other countries. However, in the early 1990s, many of these projects were either suspended or fully discontinued.

At present, Russia’s overseas nuclear activities are carried out by companies and organizations within the structure of Rosatom, including Atomstroyexport, Rusatom Overseas, Rosatom International Network, and others. Rosatom ranks first globally by the number of nuclear power plant construction projects abroad, with 41 power units in 11 countries worldwide.

In addition to building nuclear power plants, Russia exports nuclear fuel (accounting for 17% of the global market) and provides services in natural uranium enrichment. It is also engaged in geological exploration and uranium mining abroad, as well as in establishing research nuclear centers in various countries, among other activities. According to Rosatom, the total value of its foreign order portfolio exceeded $200 bln in 2025.

Hungary (Paks-2 NPP)

At present, four power units with VVER-type reactors are in operation at Hungary’s Paks NPP in the central part of the country. The plant was built under a Soviet design between 1983 and 1987. In 2005-2009, Atomstroyexport carried out a program to extend the service life of the units until 2032-2037, while their combined capacity was increased from 1,760 MW to 2,000 MW. The plant generates about 50% of Hungary’s electricity consumption.

In January 2014, Russia and Hungary signed an intergovernmental agreement on cooperation in the use of nuclear energy, providing for the construction of a third stage of the plant by Rosatom — the fifth and sixth power units (the Paks-2 NPP project). The contract for the construction of two VVER-1200 units was signed in December 2014 between Rosatom and the Hungarian energy company MVM. The cost of the Paks-2 project is estimated at 12.5 bln euro, with Russia providing Hungary a 10 bln loan euro.

On August 30, 2022, Hungary’s Atomic Energy Authority issued a permit to begin construction of the fifth power unit, after which Rosatom started earthworks at the site. In 2025, the Paks-2 project was removed from all Western sanctions.

Bangladesh (Rooppur NPP)

In November 2011, Russia and Bangladesh signed an intergovernmental agreement on cooperation in the construction of Bangladesh’s first nuclear power plant, the Rooppur NPP, located about 160 km west of the capital, Dhaka. The plant will be equipped with two power units featuring VVER-1200 reactors.

A general contract was signed in mid-December 2015, with Atomstroyexport acting as the general contractor. In early 2017, the Russian government provided Bangladesh with a state loan of $11.38 bln to finance the main stage of the project’s construction. Construction of the first power unit began on November 30, 2017, followed by the second unit on July 14, 2018. The commissioning of the first power unit is scheduled for 2026.

Belarus (Belarusian NPP)

In 2023, construction of the Belarusian Belarusian NPP was completed, with two power units of the VVER-1200 design commissioned. Discussions are currently underway regarding the construction of a third power unit at the site. Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has repeatedly stated his intention to build a second nuclear power plant in the country under a Russian design.

Egypt (El Dabaa NPP)

In November 2015, Russia and Egypt signed an intergovernmental agreement for Rosatom to build Egypt’s first nuclear power plant, comprising four VVER-1200 power units. The plant, named the El Dabaa NPP, is being constructed on the Mediterranean coast in Matrouh Governorate, about 300 km northwest of Cairo.

The contract is valued at $30 bln, most of which will be financed through a Russian state loan amounting to $25 bln. On December 11, 2017, the parties signed the acts authorizing the start of work under the contracts. Construction was initially scheduled to begin in 2020 but was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic and ultimately commenced on July 20, 2022.

In January 2024, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi took part in the ceremony to pour concrete into the foundation of the plant’s fourth power unit. In November 2025, the two leaders participated via video link in a ceremony marking the installation of the reactor vessel for the first power unit, which is scheduled to be commissioned in 2028.

India (Kudankulam NPP)

In 1998, Russia’s Ministry of Atomic Energy and the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) signed an agreement to build two power units with VVER-1000 reactors at the Kudankulam NPP. The units were constructed and commissioned in 2016-2017.

In April 2014, an agreement was reached to build the second stage of the plant based on the VVER-1000 design. The project’s cost is estimated at about $6.4 bln, including $3.4 bln in Russian loans. Construction of the third unit began in June 2017, followed by the fourth unit in October 2017.

On June 1, 2017, Atomstroyexport and NPCIL signed a framework agreement for the construction of the fifth and sixth units with VVER-1000 reactors. On July 31, 2017, the parties concluded contracts for initial engineering works, detailed design, and the supply of key equipment for the third stage of the plant. Construction of the fifth and sixth units began on June 29 and December 21, 2021, respectively. Start-up operations at the third unit are scheduled for 2026.

Iran (Bushehr NPP, Hormoz NPP)

On August 25, 1992, Russia and Iran signed two agreements — on cooperation in the peaceful use of nuclear energy and on the continuation of construction of an Iranian nuclear power plant near the city of Bushehr in the south of the country. Construction of the plant had originally begun in 1975 by a West German consortium but was halted in 1979 following the Islamic Revolution. In 1995, Zarubezhatomenergostroy (now Atomstroyexport) signed a contract with the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran to complete and refurbish the plant’s first power unit. In September 2011, the unit was connected to the grid, and its official handover to Iran took place in September 2013.

In November 2014, a contract was signed for the construction of the second stage of the plant — the second and third power units equipped with VVER-1000 reactors (the second unit of the original German design was deemed unsuitable for completion and is a subject to dismantling). The cost of their construction amounted to about $10 bln, with financing provided by the Iranian customer, the Nuclear Power Production and Development Company of Iran (NPPD). The general contractor is Atomstroyexport. The cornerstone-laying ceremony took place in September 2016, and in October 2017 construction and installation work began in the excavation pit for the main buildings of the plant’s second stage. Construction of the second power unit started on November 10, 2019.

On September 26, 2025, Russia and Iran signed a $25 bln agreement to build the Hormoz NPP in Hormozgan Province in the south of the Islamic republic. The plant is planned to comprise four power units with a total capacity of 5,000 MW.

Kazakhstan (Balkhash NPP)

On August 8, 2025, a ceremonial launch of construction of a nuclear power plant by Russia took place in Kazakhstan near the village of Ulken in Almaty Region. The facility will become the country’s first nuclear power plant.

On November 17, 2025, Kazakhstan’s Atomic Energy Agency announced that the plant, which will be built by an international consortium led by Rosatom, has been named the Balkhash NPP.

China (Tianwan NPP)

To date, Rosatom has built four power units at the Tianwan NPP, located near the village of Tianwan in eastern China’s Jiangsu Province. The total cost of these units is estimated at 3.1 bln euro. An intergovernmental agreement on the construction of the first and second units was signed in 1992, and a contract for their construction was concluded in December 1997 between Atomstroyexport and the Jiangsu Nuclear Power Corporation (JNPC). Under the contract, the units were equipped with VVER-1000/428 reactors and were commissioned in 2007.

In November 2010, Atomstroyexport and JNPC signed a general contract for the construction of the third and fourth power units with VVER-1000 reactors. Construction of the third unit began in December 2012, and its first power output was achieved on December 30, 2017. Work on the fourth unit started in 2013, and it was commissioned on October 27, 2018. Final handover to the customer took place at the end of 2020.

On June 8, 2018, an intergovernmental protocol and a framework contract were signed for the construction of the seventh and eighth power units with VVER-1200 reactors, which belong to the latest Generation III+ design. On March 7, 2019, a general contract for their construction was signed (China built the fifth and sixth units under its own design). The ceremony marking the start of construction of the seventh unit was held on May 19, 2021, followed by the eighth unit on February 28, 2022. Their commissioning is scheduled for 2028.

China (Xudapu NPP)

On June 8, 2018, Atomstroyexport and the China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) signed a cooperation protocol and a framework contract for the construction of the third and fourth power units at the Xudapu NPP in northeastern China’s Liaoning Province (the first and second units are being built by the Chinese side).

On March 7, 2019, a contract for the technical design was signed, followed on June 5 by a general contract for the construction of these units. Construction work on the third unit began on July 28, 2021, and on the fourth unit on May 19, 2022. The units are planned to be equipped with two VVER-1200 reactors. Their commissioning for commercial operation is scheduled for 2027 and 2028, respectively.

Turkey (Akkuyu NPP)

On May 12, 2010, Russia and Turkey signed an intergovernmental agreement on the construction of Turkey’s first nuclear power plant, the Akkuyu NPP, in Mersin Province in the southeast of the country. The agreement provides for the construction of four power units equipped with VVER-1200 reactors.

The customer for the project, as well as the owner of the nuclear power plant and the electricity it generates, is the Russian project company Akkuyu Nuclear. At present, nearly 100% of its shares are owned by companies within the structure of Rosatom.

The first concrete was poured for power unit No. 1 on April 3, 2018, for unit No. 2 in late June 2020. Construction of unit No. 3 began on March 10, 2021, followed by unit No. 4 on July 21, 2022. A ceremony marking the loading of nuclear fuel into the first power unit took place on April 27, 2023. Its physical start-up is expected in 2026, while the remaining units are slated to come online by 2028.

The total cost of the project is estimated at $22 bln. On February 28, 2024, Rosatom Director General Alexey Likhachev said that a "political decision" had been made for the state corporation to build a second nuclear power plant in Turkey.

Uzbekistan (small modular nuclear power plant)

On May 24, 2024, Atomstroyexport and the State Unitary Enterprise "Directorate for the Construction of Nuclear Power Plants" under Uzbekistan’s Atomic Energy Agency at the Cabinet of Ministers signed a contract for the construction of a small modular nuclear power plant (SMNPP) in the republic.

The project provides for the construction of an SMNPP in Uzbekistan’s Jizzakh Region based on a Russian design with a total capacity of 330 MW, comprising six RITM-200N reactors with a capacity of 55 MW each. Rosatom will act as the general contractor, with local companies also involved in the construction.

Construction of the site for the future nuclear power plant began in April 2025. It is also planned that Rosatom will build a large-capacity nuclear power plant in Uzbekistan.

Other countries

Rosatom is discussing or has concluded preliminary agreements on the construction of power units in a number of countries, including Brazil, Vietnam, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka, and others.

In Finland, Rosatom began preparatory work in 2016 on the Hanhikivi NPP project featuring a VVER-1200 reactor. However, in 2022, the contract for the plant’s construction was unilaterally terminated by the Finnish side.