Wyoming Celebrates Ban on Russian Uranium Imports and Nuclear Industry Boost

Wyoming’s congressional delegates are celebrating the passage of a bill that bans Russian uranium imports, a key piece of the U.S. strategy to stymie Moscow’s war effort while incentivizing a more dependable nuclear fuel supply chain at home.

The effort is years in the making and complements a broader suite of legislation known as the Nuclear Fuel Security Act (NFSA), signed by President Joe Biden earlier this year, which aims to streamline domestic production through regulatory reform and more than $2.7 billion in financial incentives.

Now, with the additional ban on Russian uranium, hitherto the largest supplier of enriched material for U.S. nuclear reactors, domestic production could take off — and Wyoming is poised to be a major player as the marketplace adjusts.

“Wyoming has the uranium to replace Russian imports, and we’re ready to use it. Our bipartisan legislation will help defund Russia’s war machine, revive American uranium production, and jumpstart investments in America’s nuclear fuel supply chain. This is a tremendous victory,” said Sen. John Barrasso, who co-sponsored the Senate’s version of the bill which now moves to the desk of President Biden, who has already signaled that he will sign it.

Even as legislation greases the wheels, rebuilding the long-neglected nuclear fuel sector will take years, experts say, and weaning off cheap Russian imports will come at a cost. Yet the rising costs are also a perquisite for creating a dependable domestic supply chain.

Texas-based Uranium Energy Corp., for instance, announced this year it will resume operations at its Wyoming mines in August, which are economically viable as long as the price of uranium remains over $60 per pound; currently, uranium is trading around $90 per pound.

For nuclear energy producers, the rising fuel cost is offset by tax credits and incentives in NFSA, which together with the Russian ban create market conditions needed to foster a full-cycle American nuclear industry, according to Uranium Energy Corp Executive Vice President Scott Melbye.

“Government policies are worthless if they don’t achieve intended results, but in this case the combination of the Nuclear Fuel Security Act … in connection with the uranium ban gives us the support and market certainty to really invest in uranium conversion,” Melbye said.

There is currently only one active uranium mine in Wyoming. Ur-Energy’s Lost Creek Mine in Sweetwater County restarted operations in 2023 and has a mineral resource estimate of 12.7 million pounds of uranium, according to a company report published in March. Soon, it may just be one of many.

Uranium Energy Corp alone is preparing 12 different mine project areas across the state, which are estimated to produce half-a-million pounds of uranium in the first year of operation. Though a small portion of the overall supply, the company says under the right market conditions it will ramp up to produce much more.

The U.S. currently consumes around 45 million pounds of uranium per year. Between its Wyoming and Texas holdings, Uranium Energy Corp will yield close to 7 million pounds per year by 2030, according to analysis from Canaccord Genuity investment group.

However, with data centers and domestic manufacturing on the rise, along with a transportation sector that’s aggressively trending electric, the company feels bullish on the energy market and believes the sector is ready to meet the moment as demand for nuclear power grows.

“I believe that the U.S. industry, with just the projects that we have a line of sight on that are built and licensed already, we can get to 20 to 25 million pounds of production by 2030,” Melbye said, referencing production potential for all U.S. uranium mines.

Wyoming is positioned especially well in the American market because its deposits are unique and recoverable at lower costs. The state’s uranium reserves are held in roll front deposits, in which uranium is stored in porous sandstone and accessible through a leeching process called in situ recovery.

Different from conventional open pit or underground uranium mining — which require drilling, blasting and managing large amounts of hard waste rock tailings — in situ recovery works by injecting oxygenated water into sandstone deposits, where it dissolves uranium into solution that is then pumped to the surface for processing.

It translates to a relatively low overhead, meaning even small deposit projects can turn a tidy profit, according to Kelsey Kehoe, uranium specialist with the Wyoming State Geological Survey.

“The geology of Wyoming’s deposits are very ideal for in situ recovery. It makes good economics for producing uranium, and we’re seeing increased activity and interest on the development side,” Kehoe told the Star-Tribune.

Melbye, of Uranium Energy Corp, expressed it similarly.

“Some of these in situ operations are not the biggest mines in the world, but they’re certainly very profitable,” he said.

The Russian import ban is welcome news to another industry heavyweight, TerraPower, the nuclear technology company with plans to deploy small modular reactors in Kemmerer. The company initially anticipated fueling its reactors with enriched Russian uranium, but said that became “untenable” following the war in Ukraine.

As a result, the company delayed its anticipated deployment date by two years and has since scrambled to find new fuel sources, including the prospect of down-blended uranium from decommissioned warheads. The company lobbied for the Russian ban, as it levels the nuclear energy playing field in the U.S. and helps secure a sustainable domestic supply, Jeff Navin, director of external affairs for TerraPower, told the Star-Tribune before the ban had passed.

In 2023, American companies were paying around $1 billion annually to Russia’s state-owned nuclear fuel supplier for enriched uranium that generated close to half of the United States’ emissions-free energy, according to reporting from Associated Press.

That money was helping fund an unjust war, Wyoming’s congressional representatives say, and now that money will be redirected toward local production.

“We should be capitalizing on Wyoming’s vast resources and boosting domestic mining, not jeopardizing our national security,” said Senator Cynthia Lummis in a statement.

Zakary Sonntag is an Energy & Environment reporter for the Star-Tribune. He can be reached at zakary.sonntag@trib.com.

The passage of a bill in Wyoming banning Russian uranium imports is a significant step in the U.S. strategy to reduce Moscow’s influence and strengthen the domestic nuclear fuel supply chain. This effort aligns with the Nuclear Fuel Security Act signed by President Biden earlier this year, aiming to boost domestic production through regulatory reforms and financial incentives. The ban on Russian uranium opens opportunities for American uranium production, particularly in Wyoming, where companies like Uranium Energy Corp are already gearing up to increase production. This shift marks a crucial moment in the revitalization of the American nuclear industry and reducing dependence on foreign sources.