The energy price explosion and also a possible energy shortage due to the Ukraine war are among the top issues every day at the moment. However, the focus is usually only on the prices for oil and natural gas. However, the uranium supply could also be at risk, at least in part, due to the conflict with Russia, and the price of uranium, like the price of oil and gas, could soon rise enormously.
Germany is still working on phasing out nuclear energy and wants to take the last three nuclear reactors off the grid soon, as planned, regardless of the conflict with Russia. However, the situation is quite different in most other nuclear energy countries, and above all in the USA. In the U.S. alone, more than 90 plants continue to generate nuclear power, and most other nuclear energy countries continue to invest in nuclear power.
Uranium is controversial, but demand is rising
While uranium is controversial as an energy source and as an investment, the fact is that demand for uranium will continue to grow and small investors in particular are increasingly turning to uranium investments.
The price of uranium has therefore been rising steadily for some time now, and the Ukraine war will not leave uranium as a raw material unscathed. In response to the sanctions imposed by the West, Russia has long been preparing to stop exporting raw materials to the Western world.
Fears of a shortage of raw materials are therefore growing, and not only in Germany. However, the focus is usually only on the energy sources oil and natural gas. However, Russia is one of the most resource-rich countries in the world, and a lack of raw materials imported from Russia can cause serious problems in all Western countries in various markets.
Uranium from Russia – very important in the USA
An important raw material in the Russian commodity portfolio is uranium. Uranium is found in numerous countries, but along with Kazakhstan, Australia and Canada, Russia is one of the most important uranium-producing countries.
The lack of Russian uranium may be only a minor problem, if any, in Germany, but the U.S. gets about 20 percent of its uranium needs from Russia – even though uranium is produced in the U.S., too.
As many nuclear energy countries are continuing to expand nuclear power for the time being and an export ban by Russia could further reduce the supply of the raw material, experts also expect uranium prices to rise in a similar way to oil and gas.
In the USA in particular, uranium prices could rise accordingly. Even though the United States has halted oil and gas shipments from Russia until further notice, uranium has not yet been on the U.S. sanctions list due to the country’s relatively high dependence on Russian uranium. Although the United States itself is one of the major uranium countries, the country obtains about 20 percent of the raw material it needs from Russia.
