Russia restricts uranium exports to US amid escalating trade tensions
Russia has announced it will temporarily limit exports of enriched uranium to the US as a symbolic “tit-for-tat” after the US imposed sanctions on Russian uranium products in May.
The move is expected to create potential supply risks for US nuclear power plants, which last year imported a quarter of their enriched uranium from the country.
Exceptions will be made for deliveries conducted under one-time licences issued by Russia’s Federal Service for Technical and Export Control, allowing the Kremlin to maintain flexibility in its export policy and leave room for selective co-operation.
War on Ukraine
US president Joe Biden signed a law in May banning enriched uranium imports from Russia – trade worth around US$1 billion each year – in an effort to disrupt president Vladimir Putin’s ability to fund Russia’s war on Ukraine and kickstart a domestic uranium supply chain.
It included waivers that would allow the US Department of Energy to maintain normal levels of Russian uranium imports through to 2027 to abate supply concerns.
The US has planned a complete ban on the import of Russian uranium products from 2028 in an effort to reduce dependence on Russian energy resources.
China imports
Meanwhile, the US government is believed to be probing whether China is importing enriched uranium from Russia and exporting its domestic production to the US.
If so, it would mean China is supporting Russia’s nuclear industry and circumventing the US ban on Russian imports.
US officials are reported to be closely watching China and other countries to ensure they are not importing Russian uranium as part of a scheme to export material produced domestically that would otherwise have been used in their own reactors.
Broader strategy
In September, President Putin suggested Russia should consider limiting exports of uranium, titanium and nickel in response to Western sanctions.
The latest restrictions are not solely retaliatory.
They are believed to be part of a broader strategy by Russia to assert its stance and influence in the nuclear materials sector, which is critical to energy and national security interests worldwide.
Uranium status
Russia is the world’s sixth-largest uranium producer and controls about 44% of global uranium enrichment capacity.
The US and China topped the list of Russian uranium importers in 2023, followed by South Korea and France.
According to World Nuclear Association figures on uranium supply, Russia had about 8% of “reasonably assured resources plus inferred resources” in 2021, with a 45% share of global enrichment capacity in 2020.
US energy future
President-elect Donald Trump has voiced his support for US oil and gas industry executive Chris Wright to head the Department of Energy and shape the nation’s energy future.
Mr Wright is the head of fracking company Liberty Energy and a skeptic of mainstream climate science.
He has strongly advocated for the need for more fossil fuels – placing him in line with Mr Trump’s repeated call for more oil production – and expressed doubts about whether climate change is driving extreme weather events.
Reversals likely
Experts say Mr Wright is likely to reverse energy initiatives by the Biden administration, which have pushed for decarbonisation of the US economy by 2035 and included zero-emissions transportation and power grid improvements.
Mr Trump has previously opposed many of these spending measures and either dismissed or deprioritised efforts to fight climate change.
If confirmed by the Senate, Mr Wright would replace current US secretary of energy Jennifer Granholm, who is a supporter of electric vehicles and initiatives such as geothermal power, carbon-free wind, solar and nuclear energy.