It is quite possible that such thoughts are already circulating for other strategic metals in the White House. At the top of the list are indium, gallium germanium, terbium and dysprosium.
The US is considering the direct purchase of strategic metals
The White House is considering a proposal whereby the government directly buys uranium from US producers while exploring ways to revive the dwindling domestic mining industry.
A working group set up by President Donald Trump to address this issue is currently reviewing an application by the nuclear industry for application of the Defense Production Act, a 68-year-old Cold War law once supported by President Harry Truman in support of the Steel industry was called. The plan calls for the government to buy US uranium to replenish its inventory but also for use in other applications, said Paul Goranson, COO of Energy Fuels Inc. in an interview.
Energy Fuels and Ur-Energy Inc. unsuccessfully petitioned the White House to set quotas for foreign uranium imports. The concept of direct government purchases of US uranium was among the ideas discussed during a roundtable with administrative staff and the nuclear industry in the Old Executive Office Building earlier this week, Goranson said.
"They seem receptive to buying raw materials directly," said Goranson. “The President intends to take bold action on this matter. Now he has his special attention. "
The White House did not respond immediately to a request for comment.
Uranium producer stocks in the US rose during the period. Energy fuels increased by up to 11%, while primary energy increased by as much as 10%. Cameco Corp. rose by around 2%.
Trump rejected the Ministry of Commerce's recommendation to introduce quotas for uranium imports by applying a trade law tied to national security concerns, which he invoked to raise tariffs on steel, solar panels, and hundreds of billions of dollars for Chinese goods. Instead, Trump said a more comprehensive analysis was needed and he instructed his government to identify other options. He set up a nuclear fuel working group consisting of six cabinet secretaries and several other senior White House officials.
America's uranium producers, who represent the miners including Cameco, are calling for "federal measures to facilitate domestic uranium production" of at least £ 7,5 million a year by 2025 and £ 10 million a year by 2030, according to a letter sent by the Santa Fe trading group , New Mexico, to the working group last month. These include contracts with the Department of Defense running into the millions, stipulations that state utilities purchase domestic uranium, and the creation of a new Federal Uranium Security Stockpile.
"We may not be able to continue any operations without immediate relief from the impact of government-sponsored corporations that have distorted world prices and made competition for free market mines in the US difficult," the group wrote in the letter containing a request for direct payments to domestic uranium companies.
In a separate letter, the Nuclear Energy Institute, which represents nuclear reactor operators, also recommended that the working group use the Defense Production Act to "expedite" the procurement of domestic uranium and the annual purchase of domestic uranium through a nuclear power plant tax credit to "incentivize".
In addition, the trading group called for a Ministry of Energy loan program to be expanded to include domestic uranium projects and for the "modernization of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's regulatory system to be more safety-oriented, risk-oriented, timely, consistent, consistent, cost-saving and transparent".
It is quite possible that such thoughts are already circulating for other strategic metals in the White House. At the top of the list are indium, gallium germanium, terbium and dysprosium.
ISE - September 2019
