Uranium mines revived as global demand for nuclear fuel surges

The United States and other Western countries are resuming work at previously mothballed uranium mines in light of rising nuclear fuel prices, Bloomberg reported on March 3.

According to him, American companies are restoring work at mines in the states of Wyoming, Texas, Arizona and Utah. Most uranium mines in these states were shut down after the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi accident, which caused nuclear fuel prices to plummet and many uranium mines to operate unprofitably.

Now more and more governments are showing interest in nuclear energy to achieve goals of reducing harmful emissions into the atmosphere, which in turn leads to higher prices for nuclear fuel. In such conditions, the work of previously mothballed uranium mines becomes profitable again.

In addition to the United States, the agency points out, Canada, Australia and Kazakhstan, which account for about two-thirds of global production, are planning to increase uranium production.

As the agency notes, according to forecasts from the International Atomic Energy Agency, demand for uranium could grow to 100 thousand tons by 2040, which means the need to almost double production by this time.

The opening of previously mothballed uranium mines in the United States, Bloomberg points out, will mark the revival of the American uranium mining industry, which was on the verge of extinction five years ago. Thus, in 2019, uranium production amounted to a record low of 78.9 tons, in turn, record high production rates were recorded in 1980, when over 19.9 thousand tons of uranium were mined.