Uranium 2009: Resources, Production and Demand
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A Joint Report by the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency ZZZQHDIU and the International Atomic Energy Agency 2010 2010 Uranium 2009: Resources, Production and Demand With several countries currently building nuclear power plants and planning the construction of more to meet long-term increases in electricity demand, uranium resources, production and Demand and Production Resources, 2009: Uranium Uranium 2009: demand remain topics of notable interest. In response to the projected growth in demand for uranium and declining inventories, the uranium industry – the first critical link in the fuel supply chain for nuclear reactors – is boosting production and developing plans for further increases in the near future. Strong market conditions will, however, be necessary to trigger the investments Resources, Production required to meet projected demand. The “Red Book”, jointly prepared by the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency and the International and Demand Atomic Energy Agency, is a recognised world reference on uranium. It is based on information compiled in 40 countries, including those that are major producers and consumers of uranium. This 23rd edition provides a comprehensive review of world uranium supply and demand as of 1 January 2009, as well as data on global uranium exploration, resources, production and reactor-related requirements. It provides substantive new information from major uranium production centres around the world, as well as from countries developing production centres for the first time. Projections of nuclear generating capacity and reactor-related uranium requirements through 2035 are also featured, along with an analysis of long-term uranium supply and demand issues. NEA Nuclear Energy Agency (66 2010 05 1 P) € 130 -:HSTCQE=UY\]^V: ISBN 978-92-64-04789-1 NUCLEAR ENERGY AGENCY A Joint Report by The OECD Nuclear Energy Agency And the International Atomic Energy Agency Uranium 2009: Resources, Production and Demand © OECD 2010 NEA No. 6891 NUCLEAR ENERGY AGENCY ORGANISATION FOR ECONOMIC CO-OPERATION AND DEVELOPMENT ORGANISATION FOR ECONOMIC CO-OPERATION AND DEVELOPMENT The OECD is a unique forum where the governments of 31 democracies work together to address the economic, social and environmental challenges of globalisation. The OECD is also at the forefront of efforts to understand and to help governments respond to new developments and concerns, such as corporate governance, the information economy and the challenges of an ageing population. The Organisation provides a setting where governments can compare policy experiences, seek answers to common problems, identify good practice and work to co-ordinate domestic and international policies. The OECD member countries are: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Chile, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Korea, Luxembourg, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, the Slovak Republic, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the United States. The European Commission takes part in the work of the OECD. OECD Publishing disseminates widely the results of the Organisation’s statistics gathering and research on economic, social and environmental issues, as well as the conventions, guidelines and standards agreed by its members. This work is published on the responsibility of the Secretary-General of the OECD. The opinions expressed and arguments employed herein do not necessarily reflect the official views of the Organisation or of the governments of its member countries. NUCLEAR ENERGY AGENCY The OECD Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA) was established on 1st February 1958 under the name of the OEEC European Nuclear Energy Agency. It received its present designation on 20th April 1972, when Japan became its first non-European full member. NEA membership today consists of 28 OECD member countries: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Korea, Luxembourg, Mexico, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, the Slovak Republic, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the United States. The Commission of the European Communities also takes part in the work of the Agency. The mission of the NEA is: – to assist its member countries in maintaining and further developing, through international co- operation, the scientific, technological and legal bases required for a safe, environmentally friendly and economical use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, as well as – to provide authoritative assessments and to forge common understandings on key issues, as input to government decisions on nuclear energy policy and to broader OECD policy analyses in areas such as energy and sustainable development. Specific areas of competence of the NEA include safety and regulation of nuclear activities, radioactive waste management, radiological protection, nuclear science, economic and technical analyses of the nuclear fuel cycle, nuclear law and liability, and public information. The NEA Data Bank provides nuclear data and computer program services for participating countries. In these and related tasks, the NEA works in close collaboration with the International Atomic Energy Agency in Vienna, with which it has a Co-operation Agreement, as well as with other international organisations in the nuclear field. Corrigenda to OECD publications may be found on line at: www.oecd.org/publishing/corrigenda. © OECD 2009 You can copy, download or print OECD content for your own use, and you can include excerpts from OECD publications, databases and multimedia products in your own documents, presentations, blogs, websites and teaching materials, provided that suitable acknowledgment of OECD as source and copyright owner is given. All requests for public or commercial use and translation rights should be submitted to [email protected]. Requests for permission to photocopy portions of this material for public or commercial use shall be addressed directly to the Copyright Clearance Center (CCC) at [email protected] or the Centre français d'exploitation du droit de copie (CFC) [email protected]. Cover credits: Cameco, Canada; AREVA, France. PREFACE Since the mid-1960s, with the co-operation of their member countries and states, the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) have jointly prepared periodic updates (currently every two years) on world uranium resources, production and demand. These updates have been published by the OECD/NEA in what is commonly known as the “Red Book”. This 23rd edition of the Red Book replaces the 2007 edition and reflects information current as of 1st January 2009. The Red Book features a comprehensive assessment of current uranium supply and demand and projections to the year 2035. The basis of this assessment is a comparison of uranium resource estimates (according to categories of geological certainty and production cost) and mine production capability with anticipated uranium requirements arising from projections of installed nuclear capacity. In cases where longer-term projections of installed nuclear capacity were not provided by national authorities, projected demand figures were developed with input from expert authorities. Current data on resources, exploration, production and uranium stocks are also presented, along with historical summaries of exploration and production, and plans for future mine production. In addition, individual country reports provide detailed information on recent developments in uranium exploration and production, updates on environmental activities and information on relevant national uranium and nuclear energy policies. The Red Book also includes a compilation and evaluation of previously published data on unconventional uranium resources. Available information on secondary sources of uranium is presented and their potential market impact is assessed. This publication has been prepared on the basis of data obtained through questionnaires sent by the NEA to OECD member countries (17 countries responded and one country report was prepared by the Secretariat of the Joint NEA/IAEA Group on Uranium) and by the IAEA for those states that are not OECD member countries (18 countries responded and four country reports were prepared by the Secretariat). The opinions expressed in Parts I and II do not necessarily reflect the position of the member countries or the international organisations concerned. This report is published on the responsibility of the OECD Secretary-General. Acknowledgement The OECD Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA), Paris, and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Vienna, would like to acknowledge the co-operation of those organisations (see Appendix 2) which replied to the questionnaire. 3 TABLE OF CONTENTS PREFACE .............................................................................................................................................. 3 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ................................................................................................................... 9 I. URANIUM SUPPLY ................................................................................................................. 15 A. URANIUM RESOURCES .................................................................................................. 15 • Identified Conventional Resources .............................................................................. 15 • Distribution