With the resurgence in nuclear power development comes a surge in fuel demand. Around the globe, once-abandoned uranium mining and enrichment projects are gaining steam, and companies are on the hunt for untapped uranium deposits to exploit.
This search is driven, in part, by an increase in the spot price of uranium over the last several years as more countries get on board with nuclear development. Prices are down from an early 2024 spike that caught producers’ attention, but they’re still on a long-term upward trend.
There’s been a flurry of news from the uranium market in the last few weeks. Let’s get up to date.
Eyes on Uzbekistan: Uzbekistan is the world’s fifth-largest uranium producer, mining ~7% of the world’s supply. Last week, French uranium company Orano announced plans to develop an Uzbek mining project in partnership with Navoiyuran, an Uzbek operator.
- The project at South Djengeldi is expected to operate for over a decade and ramp up to peak production of 700 metric tons annually.
- It’s part of a broader collaboration between the two companies that has been going on since 2022.
Back to the US: At home, there’s a strong push to reopen shuttered uranium mines and ramp up domestic enrichment capacity. That’s partly due to the anticipated needs of SMRs and new nuclear developments, but it’s also driven by geopolitics. Congress banned imports of Russian uranium last May, with waivers to the ban ending by 2027.
The US relies heavily on Russian imports (and fuel imports in general, since it has a very limited enrichment capacity). US producers are looking to remedy that.
- Snow Lake entered a strategic partnership with Global Uranium and Enrichment Ltd. to acquire the Pine Ridge Uranium Project in Wyoming.
- Uranium Energy Corp. announced last week that it produced its first batch of yellowcake from a new Wyoming project ahead of shipping it out for enrichment.
- enCore’s Alta Mesa enrichment facility is expected to ramp up to its nameplate capacity this year.
Price check: Uranium spot prices have fallen since the soaring highs of early 2024 that induced an influx of mine reopenings and production plans. As of February, the spot price for uranium was $65.03, down from $95 at the same time last year, per Cameco. But in a sign of optimism, the long-term price is actually up—it’s at $80 compared to last year’s $75.
Lead Reporter of Ignition
