Journal of Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Waste Technology(JNFCWT) (방사성폐기물학회지)

Korean Radioactive Waste Society (한국방사성폐기물학회)
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Long Term Trend of Uranium Production and Price

  • Received : 2023.01.16
  • Accepted : 2023.03.22
  • Published : 2023.06.30
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Abstract

To broaden the utilization of nuclear energy, uranium as a fuel should be mined indispensably. Mining accounts for the largest portion of the cost of producing the uranium assembly. Therefore, this study analyzes the trends of uranium prices, which have a significant impacts on the mining cost. Uranium production contributing to the price fluctuations is explained in five periods from 1945 to the present. Moreover, the series of events affecting uranium prices from the 1970s until the present are verified. Among them, the most recent incidents considered in this study are the following: COVID-19 pandemic, Kazakhstan unrest, and Russia-Ukraine war. European countries have started to reconsider the transition to nuclear power to reduce their dependence on Russian oil and gas, which has contributed to the surge in uranium prices. Based on the results of this study, various international issues have been closely associated with the nuclear power industry and uranium, affecting the production of uranium and its price.

Keywords

Acknowledgement

This study was supported by the Korea Institute of Energy Technology Evaluation and Planning (KETEP No. 20204010600130) and the Ministry of Trade, Industry & Energy (MOTIE) of the Republic of Korea.

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