Moscow, Russia
Energycrossroad.com is participating in the 2025 World Atomic Week (WAW), currently underway in Moscow from September 25–29, 2025. The event is the world’s largest international platform for nuclear cooperation, bringing together leaders from nuclear-developing countries, government agencies, industry giants, scientists, and journalists to explore the peaceful uses of atomic energy.
Representing Energycross road.com is the editor in chief Emmanuel Aboagye-Wiafe, recipient of the 2023 Ghana Energy Award for Best Energy Reporter and 2024 Nuclear Reporter of the Year. He joins 14 other selected energy journalists from across Africa including from Namibia, Rwanda, South Africa, Tanzania and Burundi, at the invitation of the Russian State Atomic Corporation, ROSATOM.
Media Tour of Obninsk: City of the Peaceful Atom
As part of the World Atomic Week activities, the journalists were taken on a media tour of Obninsk, home to the World’s First Nuclear Power Plant, which began operations on June 26, 1954. The tour highlighted the evolution of nuclear energy—from its destructive past to its modern-day peaceful applications in electricity generation, agriculture, food preservation, and advanced medical treatments like cancer therapy.
Obninsk, often called the City of Peaceful Atom, remains a hub for nuclear research and education. Key institutions include:
Obninsk Institute for Nuclear Power Engineering (NRNU MEPhI)
Obninsk University of Human Sciences
ROSATOM Technical Academy – a multidisciplinary center training domestic and international nuclear professionals.
Tour of the First Nuclear Power Plant and Museum Complex
Journalists visited the Industry Memorial Complex, part of the original NPP, which has been open to the public since 2009 and attracts over 4,000 visitors annually. The guided tour included:
The central control board room
The reactor hall (including the preserved reactor lid at zero level and equipment up to 17.5 meters underground)
The radiation control board room, director’s office, and thematic exhibits
The facility, despite its size and purpose, is architecturally reminiscent of a civic building rather than an industrial plant, with most of its operational components located underground.
In celebration of the 70th anniversary of the nuclear plant, parts of the complex were recently renovated, showcasing its historical and technological significance.
Recognition of African Nuclear Reporting
This visit builds on Aboagye-Wiafe’s previous recognition by ROSATOM, which in 2024 awarded him the title of Best African Nuclear Energy Reporter of the Year at a ceremony in Sochi, Russia. He shared the honor with Eric Biegon, a journalist from Kenya.
