US Senate votes to ban enriched uranium imports from Russia – Bloomberg

On the evening of 30 April, the US Senate unanimously voted to pass a law banning the import of enriched uranium from Russia.

Source: Bloomberg

Details: The document was sent for signature to US President Joe Biden.

The law will enter into force 90 days after signing.

Until January 2028, some legal deviations are permitted. If there are no alternative sources of supply, the US Department of Energy will be able to issue permission to import enriched uranium from Russia.

This law will expire at the end of 2040.

Russia provided approximately a quarter of the enriched uranium used as fuel for the US Navy's more than 90 commercial reactors, making it the first foreign supplier. These sales earn Russia approximately US$1 billion per year, but replacing these sources could be difficult and risk raising the price of enriched uranium by almost 20%.

The White House is calling for a "long-term ban" on Russian imports, which is needed to release approximately US$2.7 billion in support for the domestic uranium industry provided by Congress earlier this year.

According to Bloomberg, if the United States prohibits imports, Russia may counter by imposing a unilateral export ban.

The import prohibition will take some time to have an effect on the nuclear power plant operators in the United States. Reactors are typically refuelled every 18-24 months, and fuel purchases are coordinated ahead of time. That means that most, if not all, utilities have enough uranium to keep their reactors running for the next few years.

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