• Roscosmos signed contract with aerospace firm NPO Lavochkin for 2036 lunar power plant completion
• Nuclear facility will support joint Russian-Chinese moon base amid intensifying competition with NASA
• Project marks Russia’s bid to reassert space dominance after Luna-25 mission crashed in August 2023

MOSCOW, RU (TDR) — Russia signed a state contract in December 2025 to build a nuclear-powered lunar energy facility by 2036, escalating the global competition to establish permanent infrastructure on the Moon.

Nuclear Power For Moon Base Operations

Roscosmos, Russia’s state space corporation, announced the contract with aerospace company NPO Lavochkin to develop the Russia lunar power plant. While Roscosmos did not explicitly confirm nuclear technology, the project involves Rosatom, Russia’s state nuclear corporation, and the Kurchatov Institute, the country’s leading nuclear research center.

The facility will provide long-term electricity for Russian lunar rovers, an observatory, and infrastructure supporting the International Lunar Research Station — a joint project with China targeting mid-2030s operation.

“The project is an important step toward creating a permanently functioning scientific lunar station and the transition from one-time missions to a long-term lunar exploration program,” Roscosmos said.

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The contract term runs through 2025-2026 for initial development, with the broader plan extending through 2036 and including spacecraft development, ground testing, flight tests, and deployment on the Moon’s surface.

Russia-China Alliance Faces NASA Competition

The Russia lunar power plant announcement highlights deepening cooperation between Moscow and Beijing in space exploration. In May 2025, the two nations signed an agreement to build a lunar nuclear power source supporting the ILRS, with Russia contributing expertise in deep-space systems and nuclear power.

This partnership directly challenges NASA, which announced in August 2025 that it plans to deploy a 100-kilowatt nuclear reactor on the Moon by 2030 — six years ahead of Russia’s timeline. Acting NASA Administrator Sean Duffy warned that the first nation to establish a reactor could create a “keep-out zone” limiting other countries’ access to valuable lunar resources.

“We’re in a race to the moon, in a race with China to the moon. And to have a base on the moon, we need energy,” Duffy said.

Why Nuclear Power On The Moon

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Nuclear energy has emerged as the preferred solution for lunar operations because the Moon’s environment makes solar power unreliable. The lunar surface experiences two-week periods of darkness, and perpetually shadowed craters near the south pole — where water ice is believed to exist — receive no sunlight at all.

A nuclear reactor could operate continuously for a decade or more, powering habitats, rovers, mining operations, and life-support systems essential for sustained human presence.

Russia Seeks Space Comeback After Setbacks

The Russia lunar power plant project represents Moscow’s effort to reassert itself as a major space power after recent failures. Russia’s unmanned Luna-25 spacecraft crashed while attempting to land on the Moon in August 2023, marking a significant blow to the country’s lunar ambitions.

Once a global leader following Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin’s historic 1961 spaceflight, Russia has fallen behind the United States and increasingly China in space exploration over recent decades.

Will Russia and China’s partnership successfully establish the first permanent lunar power infrastructure, or will NASA’s aggressive 2030 timeline secure American dominance in the new space race?

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