A scramble for uranium has developed after the Ukraine conflict and short-sighted Western sanctions on Russia exposed Europe’s dependency on Russian oil and gas, The Economist has argued.

About 10% of the world’s electricity is generated from uranium in nuclear reactors.

But the problem is that Kazakhstan, that boasts a close mutually-beneficial relationship with Russia, is the largest uranium producer in the world.

With a US ban on uranium enriched in Russia to kick in in August, the West is scrambling to devise ways to import mined uranium from Kazakhstan directly, noted the publication.

A glance at the stats shows who stands to gain from the uranium boom.

▪️Kazakhstan’s uranium reserves ranked first in the world in 2022, amounting to approximately 316,000 metric tons;

▪️Kazakhstan led the field in uranium production in 2023, churning out 22,967 metric tons (43% of global exports). Kazakhstan is projected to produce 31,000 tons by 2025;

▪️Russia controls 25% of uranium production in Kazakhstan. State firm Rosatom secured second place in terms of uranium reserves in 2023 after it purchased a 49% stake in the Budenovskoye field – expected to become the world’s biggest source of the mineral;

▪️Kazakhstan relies on Russia for the conversion of uranium ore into nuclear fuel. Rosatom ranks in the top three in all stages of the nuclear fuel cycle;

▪️Russia accounts for roughly 44% of the world’s uranium enrichment capacity;

▪️Around half of Kazakhstan’s uranium goes to China, supplying almost two-thirds of its uranium intake. The China National Uranium Corporation already signed joint mining ventures that will grant it nearly 60% of future uranium production in Kazakhstan.

Many African countries have uranium resources. Here is a list of some African countries known to have significant uranium deposits:

1. Niger
2. Namibia
3. South Africa
4. Malawi
5. Gabon
6. Zambia
7. Tanzania
8. Algeria
9. Botswana
10. Central African Republic
11. Democratic Republic of the Congo
12. Guinea
13. Libya
14. Mali
15. Mauritania
16. Mozambique
17. Nigeria
18. Senegal
19. Somalia
20. Zimbabwe

These countries vary in terms of their production levels and the extent of their uranium resources.