PARIS (Reuters) – The lack of a clear position from the European Union (EU) with regard to Russian nuclear fuels is hampering investments in uranium enrichment plants, said an official of the French group Orano.
Long-term prices for enriched uranium – which is used to make fuel for nuclear power plants – have risen from $60 per separation work unit (SWU) before the war to $166 today as utilities sought to reduce their dependence on Russia, which represented more than 25% of European and American supplies before the start of the conflict in February 2022.
However, the EU has not yet decided to ban or reduce its imports of Russian nuclear fuel and Rosatom still holds 43% of the world’s installed uranium enrichment capacity, compared to 31% for the European group Urenco, 12% for Orano and the balance for China.
“What is holding back operators a little from investing in new enrichment capacities is the need for a clear framework,” declared Jacques Peythieu, Customer and Strategy Director of Orano, during an interview with Reuters.
“If the war stopped tomorrow and Russia came back massively with exports to the market, this could lower prices, prevent us from making investments and again increase the West’s dependence on Russia,” he added.
“To what extent do Western countries find it reasonable to depend on Russia or China? The United States is answering this question with a policy aimed at zero Russian imports from 2028 – with exceptions – and with customs duties on Chinese imports. Europe is much more timid and does not have a very clear policy on the subject.
Orano, specialized in the production and management of nuclear fuels, will inaugurate the capacity expansion project at its Georges Besse 2 enrichment plant in Tricastin (Drôme and Vaucluse) on Thursday.
The former Areva validated this 1.7 billion euro project a year ago in the face of the risk of interruption of Russian supplies and after being requested by its Western customers, particularly American ones.
The group, 90% owned by the French state, also plans to start enriching uranium in the United States in the early 2030s as part of a plant project in Tennessee.
(Reporting by Benjamin Mallet; editing by Kate Entringer)
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