...Prior to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Fortum maintained a significant presence in Russia. Together with its subsidiary, Uniper, Fortum employed 7,000 workers in Russia and its Russian operations accounted for roughly 20 percent of the Fortum Group’s total operating profit.10 Excluding Uniper’s Russian subsidiaries, Fortum employs 2,700 workers in Russia and owns seven power plants in the country, three solar plants, and one wind farm. At its Loviisa nuclear power plants, Fortum continues to source uranium fuel from a division of Rosatom, a Russian state-owned company that also manages Russia’s nuclear weapons arsenal and is “overseeing the occupied Ukrainian Zaporizhzhia nuclear power station.” Fortum states that regulatory requirements make it extremely difficult to change suppliers and the company will likely keep sourcing from Rosatom until the licences for the plants expire in 2027 and 2030...

These activities in Russia risk enabling and financing Russia’s violations of IHL and human rights law during the ongoing invasion and occupation of Ukraine and violating Fortum’s human rights commitments. It remains to be seen how directly Fortum will be impacted by the partial mobilisation and the heightened legal, regulatory, operational, and financial risks associated with companies being required to provide direct support to the internationally sanctioned Russian military.

We seek to understand the status of Fortum’s exposure to Russia and how Fortum has conducted and continues to conduct heightened human rights due diligence, per its stated policy and the UNGPs concerning due diligence in conflict-affected areas, and how the findings of such a process has resulted in these continued business activities and relationships...

In consideration of the above points and B4Ukraine’s Declaration, we request an urgent dialogue with Fortum’s relevant senior management and staff to discuss the company’s ongoing activities and relationships in Russia, associated risks to the people of Ukraine and the company, and potential steps to prevent/mitigate these risks...