US uranium imports from Russia more than double in 6M23

By bne IntelliNews September 1, 2023

US uranium imports from Russia were up 2.2-fold in 2022 to 416 tonnes in the first six months of this year, as Washington is forced to admit that it remains heavily dependent on Russian nuclear fuel.

The US has its own deposits of uranium, but they are insufficiently developed to supply its burgeoning nuclear power plant (NPP) sector. And despite having been the home of the Manhattan Project, the US lacks sufficient processing power to refine raw uranium into the burnable U235 – a business that Russia dominates globally.

In the first six months of the year, the US more than doubled its imports of Russian uranium, spending $695.5mn in the process. Experts say that it will take at least five years of heavy investment for the US to break its dependency on Russian imports of U235.

Former US Deputy Secretary of Energy Dan Poneman noted that the US and other importers of Russian uranium are confronted with a crucial choice: either to persist with the imports from Russia or shut their reactors down.

While its gas export business withers away, Russia’s nuclear exports are booming and nuclear technology and U235 have become the new gas as the Kremlin seeks to bind countries to its axis with nuclear power plants (NPPs).

Russia has built, or has orders to build, some 40 reactors around the world, and around the same number at home. The Kremlin also usually provides financing for up to 80% of the costs of construction, providing a very appealing package for other energy-starved developing markets.

As a Russian-built NPP usually comes with a 60-year service contract and fuel supplies, Russia’s NPP deals provide the Kremlin with a long-term stable dependency that it can exploit. Countries that have recently bought a Russian NPP include Belarus, whose facility is already operating, as well as South Africa and Egypt.

Supplies of raw U 235 to “unfriendly” countries like the US also give Moscow leverage in the current geopolitical standoff. Nuclear technology and fuel have been kept off the sanctions lists.

Read in IntelliNews Pro
Get IntelliNews Pro

Related Articles

Russia’s Gazprombank ramps US dollar operation fee to 12%

Russia’s third largest bank Gazprombank, affiliated with the natural gas giant Gazprom, will ramp up the commission fee for handling US dollars on its corporate accounts to 12%, according to ... more

Ukraine prepares a Plan B in case international funding dries up

Ukraine’s government is preparing a Plan B to fund its operations in case international funding dries up in 2024, UBN reported on December 1. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy signed ... more

FC Otkritie and Russian Agricultural Bank post losses in October

In October 2023 Financial Corporation Otkritie (FC Otkritie) topped the list of loss-making banks in Russia with RUB10.55bn in red, while Russian Agricultural Bank (RosSelkhozBank or RSHB) also ... more

Follow Us On

Most Read

  1. Top Ukrainian politician David Arakhamia gives seventh confirmation of Russia-Ukraine peace deal agreed in March 2022
    10 days ago
  2. Armenia marks new era with French military purchases
    8 days ago
  3. LONG READ: The boomerang effect: sanctions hurt Europe more than Russia
    5 days ago
  4. Putin's approval rating up to 85% in November, Russians happy with the country's direction
    2 days ago
  5. Oil continues to flow to Israel via Turkey despite Erdogan’s vehement speeches on plight of Gaza
    1 month ago
  1. Oil continues to flow to Israel via Turkey despite Erdogan’s vehement speeches on plight of Gaza
    1 month ago
  2. Top Ukrainian politician David Arakhamia gives seventh confirmation of Russia-Ukraine peace deal agreed in March 2022
    10 days ago
  3. Russia overtakes Germany to become fifth biggest economy in the world in GDP on a PPP basis
    3 months ago
  4. Armenia marks new era with French military purchases
    8 days ago
  5. Lavrov confirms Ukraine war peace deal reached last April, but then abandoned
    2 months ago

Reports

SELECT `n`.`nid` AS `id`, `n`.`title`, 'bne IntelliNews' AS authors, 'bne IntelliNews' AS bylines, `wc`.`field_website_callout_value` AS `summary`, `smc`.`field_social_media_callout_value` AS `social`, `pd`.`published_at` AS `date`, `p`.`field_publication__tid` AS `publication_id`, `fm`.`uri` AS `image`, `fspcaption`.`field_story_photo_caption_value` AS `image_credit`, `fspcredit`.`field_story_photo_credit_value` AS `image_author`, `ws`.`field_website_sections_tid` AS `section_id`, `fdfs`.`field_subject_tid` AS `subject_id`, `db`.`body_value` AS `body`, `fm2`.`uri` AS `pdf`, `et`.`field_enable_tracking_value` AS `tracking`, `ht`.`field_head_tags_value` AS `headTags`, `bt`.`field_body_tags_value` AS `bodyTags` FROM `node` AS `n` LEFT JOIN `field_data_field_website_callout` AS `wc` ON wc.entity_id = n.nid LEFT JOIN `field_data_field_social_media_callout` AS `smc` ON smc.entity_id = n.nid LEFT JOIN `publication_date` AS `pd` ON pd.nid = n.nid LEFT JOIN `field_data_field_publication_` AS `p` ON p.entity_id = n.nid LEFT JOIN `field_data_field_story_picture` AS `sp` ON sp.entity_id = n.nid LEFT JOIN `file_managed` AS `fm` ON fm.fid = sp.field_story_picture_fid LEFT JOIN `field_data_field_story_photo_caption` AS `fspcaption` ON fspcaption.entity_id = n.nid LEFT JOIN `field_data_field_story_photo_credit` AS `fspcredit` ON fspcredit.entity_id = n.nid LEFT JOIN `workflow_node` AS `wn` ON wn.nid = n.nid LEFT JOIN `field_data_field_website_sections` AS `ws` ON ws.entity_id = n.nid LEFT JOIN `field_data_field_subject` AS `fdfs` ON fdfs.entity_id = n.nid LEFT JOIN `field_data_body` AS `db` ON db.entity_id = n.nid LEFT JOIN `field_data_field_file` AS `ff` ON ff.entity_id = n.nid LEFT JOIN `file_managed` AS `fm2` ON fm2.fid = ff.field_file_fid LEFT JOIN `field_data_field_enable_tracking` AS `et` ON et.entity_id = n.nid LEFT JOIN `field_data_field_head_tags` AS `ht` ON ht.entity_id = n.nid LEFT JOIN `field_data_field_body_tags` AS `bt` ON bt.entity_id = n.nid WHERE (n.status = 1) AND (n.type = 'article') AND (n.nid = 290685) AND (wn.sid= 3) AND (p.field_publication__tid IN (2465,2851,3184,3159,3266,3264,3270,3265,3267,3268,3269,3171,3168,3185,3170,1346,1345,3180,3175,3254,3249,1207,1208,3181,3231,3177,3186,3178,1003,3187,2975,3204,3198,3188,3202,3196,3250,3189,3160,3161,3312,3313,3173,3314,3315,3167,3259,3257,3263,3258,3260,3261,3262,3174,3316,3165,3192,3163,3282,3190,2811,3256,3317,3162,3318,3191,3297,3182,3179,3166,3319,3376,3320,3172,3255,3169,1008,3203,3197,3321,3252,3164,1307,3322,3183,3220,3176,3201,3323,1327,1020,1006,1009,1013,1014,1018,1005,1328,1010,1011,1002,1012,1311,1330,1017,1016,1019,1004,1001,1334,1335,1336,1015,1337,1338,1339,1340,1341,2496,2501,2517,2529,2506,2505,2524,2513,2526,2537,2489,2490,2520,2536,2488,2532,2500,2515,2503,2493,2527,2523,2510,2525,2498,2499,2528,2507,2487,2511,2521,2502,2491,2519,2497,2492,2514,2495,2509,2512,1629,3358)) LIMIT 1
Dismiss