Luch Scientific Production Association (Podolsk)

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Luch Scientific Production Association (Podolsk) is a Russian company based in Podolsk and part of Rosatom, the state nuclear corporation. It began as a research and production unit for rare earth metals used in the nuclear industry and later became NPO Luch in the late 1980s. The company produces metals, alloys, and compounds such as tungsten, molybdenum, niobium, zirconium, tantalum, beryllium, chromium, rhenium, and titanium for the nuclear, chemical, and electronics sectors.

Luch was a leading developer of the Topaz-2 satellite nuclear power reactor and is developing components for the Topaz-3 reactor, including thermionic fuel elements. It has also carried out work on high-temperature reactor cores for nuclear rocket propulsion intended for space projects. The Associated Expedition of NPO Luch, the enterprise’s field test facility, is located in Semey, Kazakhstan. The company’s official website is sialuch.com.