Nuclear decommissioning specialist Nukem switches to Japanese ownership
The previous Russian owner caused problems for Nukem after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. These could now be solved.
Nukem is involved in the dismantling of the Philippsburg nuclear power plant, among other things. The picture shows work on the containment.
(Image: EnBW)
The Japanese IT company Muroosystems is acquiring Nukem Technologies, which specializes in the dismantling of nuclear power plants and the treatment of radioactive waste. The company has been Russian-owned since 2009, initially as a subsidiary of the nuclear power plant constructor Atomstroyexport, and since 2019 it has belonged to the fuel company TVEL, which in turn belongs to the Russian group Rosatom.
Due to these links with Russian companies, Nukem Technologies filed for insolvency under self-administration in April of this year. In a statement, Nukem itself spoke of challenges "resulting from deteriorating conditions for business activities due to the ownership structure following the outbreak of the war in Ukraine in February 2022". In addition, a sales process had failed due to legal uncertainties in connection with the Russian ownership.
Sales talks since 2022
The decision to sell Nukem had already been made in 2022 due to the "tense geopolitical challenges". Since then, intensive sales talks have been held with interested parties. Muroosystems is acquiring all shares in Nukem Technologies Engineering Services GmbH as well as key assets of the parent company Nukem Technologies GmbH, according to a statement. The new owner will enable Nukem to return to markets that were no longer accessible due to the previous ownership structure.
Founded in 1960, Nukem initially manufactured nuclear fuel elements, for example for the first commercial nuclear power plant in Kahl, Bavaria. With funding from the German government, Nukem acquired expertise in the manufacture of fuel elements. From the end of the 1960s, Nukem shifted its focus to other areas of the fuel cycle, as the company itself describes. In the 1980s, the Nukem subsidiary Transnuklear came suspected of of having illegally disposed of radioactive waste. Transnuklear and Nukem were stripped of their nuclear licenses and thus their operating permits, and Nukem then concentrated on nuclear engineering with plant construction and uranium trading.
In 2006, the parent company RWE sold the Nukem Group to a financial investor. Trading in fuel for power and research reactors and trading in isotopes were pooled in Nukem GmbH, while the subsidiary Nukem Technologies concentrated on dismantling, radioactive waste management and engineering technology.
(anw)
