The world is urged to quickly invest in uranium mining to tackle the rising demand for nuclear energy. This call comes from a recent report by the Nuclear Energy Agency and International Atomic Energy Agency, which emphasizes the growing interest in nuclear power.
According to their biennial Red Book report, the current uranium resources may be depleted by the 2080s if nuclear capacity continues to increase until 2050 and remains high. The report suggests that while there are enough uranium resources to support future growth, significant investments in new mining and processing techniques are necessary to meet this demand.
The agencies stressed that action is needed now to ensure a steady supply of uranium in the near future.
Governments and large corporations are increasingly viewing nuclear energy as a reliable, low-carbon alternative. The US, UK, and South Korea have pledged to triple global nuclear capacity to further support this transition by 2050, an ambitious goal announced at the recent COP28 climate summit. Major tech companies like Microsoft and Amazon are also investing more in nuclear power, hoping it will help power the new data centers essential for artificial intelligence technologies.
The International Energy Agency has noted that nuclear energy is experiencing a resurgence, with investment increasing almost 50% over the past three years. However, the demand for uranium will need to be accompanied by increased mining efforts, as projected nuclear capacity could rise by 130% by 2050 compared to 2022 levels.
Experts warn that the current projections may fall short as they do not fully account for recent surges in interest from both businesses and policymakers. There’s growing concern that energy companies in the West may face a uranium shortage due to the increasing demand.
Kazakhstan, which is the largest uranium producer, accounted for 43% of global production in 2022, has been selling more to its neighbors such as Russia and China and less to markets in the US and Europe. Last year, Kazakhstan produced more uranium than Canada, Namibia, Australia, and Uzbekistan combined.
At the beginning of 2023, the report noted there were nearly 8 million tonnes of known recoverable uranium resources, which could be exhausted within this century. However, there are also unexplored deposits, and the researchers predict that investments in exploration might uncover additional resources.
While nuclear reactors often rely on both newly mined uranium and “secondary” sources—such as government and utility storage—the report emphasized the importance of bringing new mining operations online to meet future demand.