PARIS: The recent military coup in Niger has sparked questions regarding Europe’s reliance on uranium mined in the West African country for its nuclear power plants. As Europe’s second-largest supplier of natural uranium in 2022, Niger’s political instability has raised concerns over potential disruptions to uranium supplies.
France’s nuclear fuel company Orano, which operates a uranium mine in northern Niger, employs around 900 mostly Nigeran staff. While Orano stated that it was closely monitoring the situation, the coup has not yet impacted uranium deliveries. Niger contributes only a small percentage of the global production of natural uranium, producing 4.7 percent of the world’s total in 2021, with Kazakhstan leading at 45.2 percent, according to the Euratom Supply Agency (ESA).
In 2022, Niger was the second-largest supplier of natural uranium to the European Union, accounting for 25.38 percent of its total supply. Kazakhstan, Niger, and Canada collectively provided 74.19 percent of the EU’s natural uranium. However, European Commission spokesman Adalbert Jahnz assured that the bloc was not at risk of supply problems due to the coup, as EU utilities have sufficient inventories to mitigate any short-term risks.
Niger as a Largest Source of Uranium
For France, which operates 56 nuclear reactors generating over two-thirds of the nation’s electricity, Niger was the third-largest source of uranium during the 2005-2020 period, contributing 19 percent of the total, following Kazakhstan and Australia. Despite this historical significance, Alain Antil from the French Institute for International Relations (IFRI) noted that Niger is no longer Paris’s strategic partner in the uranium sector as it once was in the past.
France’s energy transition ministry affirmed that Niger’s situation posed no immediate risk for natural uranium supplies due to diversification efforts. Over the past decade, the operator of France’s nuclear reactors, EDF, has sought to diversify its suppliers, turning to Central Asian nations such as Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, as well as Australia. EDF has also stockpiled several years’ worth of supplies and invested in recycling used nuclear fuel to ensure security and reduce dependence on specific suppliers.
The political and economic events in 2021 and early 2022 highlighted the importance of ESA’s recommendations on diversifying suppliers to minimize risks in the global nuclear market. The report emphasizes that while overall deliveries of natural uranium to EU utilities are well diversified, some utilities still rely solely on one supplier.
France and Europe maintain strategic stocks of uranium at various stages of transformation equivalent to two years of consumption. These reserves provide a buffer against supply disruptions as uranium passes through multiple processing stages before being used as fuel in nuclear reactors.
