U.S. President Donald Trump has declined to set quotas on uranium production inside the country, Reuters and Bloomberg reported, citing a memorandum signed by Trump.
In the document, the U.S. president said he disagreed with the Commerce Department’s findings that uranium imports from abroad threaten national security.
Trump also said the findings raise “significant concerns” and call for a more thorough study of the issue. “A fuller analysis of national security considerations with respect to the entire nuclear fuel supply chain is necessary at this time,” he said.
Why the U.S. needs uranium production quotas
American uranium accounted for only 7% of the fuel for civilian nuclear reactors in the United States, according to 2017 data, Reuters said. The rest is still supplied from abroad. Two years ago, Canada topped the list of major exporters (25%), followed by Kazakhstan (24%), Australia (20%), Russia (14%) and Uzbekistan (4%).
The U.S. Commerce Department launched an investigation into uranium supplies after a petition from two American uranium ore mining companies, Ur-Energy and Energy Fuels. The department sought to calculate the damage that uranium supplies from abroad could do to U.S. national security.
In 2017, uranium production in the U.S. fell to record lows. Production of triuranium octoxide dropped 38%, to 1.8 million pounds (816 metric tons), because of purchases of this raw material from foreign companies. To support the industry, the companies proposed introducing a quota that would reserve 25% for American producers, as well as requiring energy companies and agencies to buy American uranium.
- Since July 7, Iran has suspended some of its commitments under the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action on its nuclear program and has begun enriching uranium above the set limit of 3.67%.
- In January 2019, the American company Westinghouse allowed Ukraine to use nuclear fuel production technology in building a plant.
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