Smolensk's planned new units get environmental approval

Russia's State Environmental Expertise has approved the licence justification for two new reactor units at Smolensk Nuclear Power Station. The approval clears an administrative hurdle in Russia's project development process; no timeline for construction, financing, or commissioning was reported.

Where this fits

This is a data point in the global divergence on energy strategy. Russia, like France, China, India and South Korea, is building new nuclear capacity as baseload generation. Australia, by contrast, has a blanket ban on nuclear power and is pursuing a renewables-only transition. The Smolensk approval underscores that nuclear remains the path chosen by industrial economies seeking firm, low-emission, low-material electricity. It also shows nuclear development advancing in a geopolitical competitor, while Australia's ban locks in dependence on renewables supply chains owned by that same rival.

What it means

Australia's energy transition is now a function of manufacturing capacity and raw-material flows controlled largely by China. A nuclear-capable grid would require domestic fuel enrichment and reactor-building expertise, but would cut the supply-chain dependence that a renewables build creates. The Smolensk units will produce firm power for Russia's grid; Australia's equivalent capacity will come from weather-dependent generation plus gas peaking plants, with battery and panel imports priced and scheduled by Beijing. The energy security question is not whether renewables can scale, but whether Australia can afford the whole-system cost and strategic exposure of scaling them alone.