Russia plans to build first lunar nuclear power plant by mid-2020s

Russia is planning to build the first nuclear power plant on the Moon by the middle of the next decade, in a project Moscow says is intended to support the development of an interplanetary station, according to Alexey Likhachev, director general of the Russian state nuclear corporation Rosatom.

Likhachev said Russia should establish the first nuclear power facility on the lunar surface, adding that by the mid-2020s, a nuclear energy unit should be set up there "to organize an interplanetary station."

If realized, the project would mark the first facility of its kind on the Moon, giving Russia a leading position in the race for space-based energy solutions.

Rosatom, a Russian state-owned company founded in 2007, has become one of the largest players in the global nuclear energy market.