Uranium 2007: Resources, Production and Demand
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A Joint Report by the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency and the International Atomic Energy Agency 2008 Uranium 2007: Resources, Production and Demand With several countries building nuclear power plants and many more considering the use of nuclear power to produce electricity in order to meet rising demand, the uranium industry Demand and Production Resources, 2007: Uranium Uranium 2007: has become the focus of considerable attention. In response to rising demand and declining inventories, uranium prices have increased dramatically in recent years. As a result, the uranium industry is undergoing a significant revival, bringing to an end a period of over 20 years of underinvestment. Resources, Production The “Red Book”, jointly prepared by the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency and the International Atomic Energy Agency, is a recognised world reference on uranium. It is based on official and Demand information received from 40 countries. This 22nd edition provides a comprehensive review of world uranium supply and demand as of 1st January 2007, as well as data on global uranium exploration, resources, production and reactor-related requirements. It provides substantive new information from major uranium production centres in Africa, Australia, Central Asia, Eastern Europe and North America. Projections of nuclear generating capacity and reactor- related uranium requirements through 2030 are also featured, along with an analysis of long- term uranium supply and demand issues. www.nea.fr (66 2008 03 1 P) € 120 -:HSTCQE=UY\[[W: ISBN 978-92-64-04766-2 NUCLEAR•ENERGY•AGENCY Cover_f.fm Page 1 Wednesday, April 7, 2004 11:00 AM A Joint Report by the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency and the International Atomic Energy Agency Uranium 2007: Resources, Production and Demand © OECD 2008 NEA No. 6345 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 30 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, 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 Commission of the European Communities 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, Luxembourg, Mexico, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Republic of Korea, 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. © OECD 2008 OECD freely authorises the use, including the photocopy, of this material for private, non-commercial purposes. Permission to photocopy portions of this material for any public use or commercial purpose may be obtained from the Copyright Clearance Center (CCC) at [email protected] or the Centre français d’exploitation du droit de copie (CFC) [email protected]. All copies must retain the copyright and other proprietary notices in their original forms. All requests for other public or commercial uses of this material or for translation rights should be submitted to [email protected]. Cover credit: Cameco, USA. 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 22nd edition of the Red Book replaces the 2005 edition and reflects information current as of 1st January 2007. The Red Book features a comprehensive assessment of current uranium supply and demand and projections to the year 2030. 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 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 compiled and the potential market impact of this material is assessed. This publication has been prepared on the basis of data obtained through questionnaires sent by the NEA to OECD member countries (19 countries responded) and by the IAEA for those states that are not OECD member countries (21 countries responded and one country report was prepared by the IAEA Secretariat). The opinions expressed in Parts I and II do not necessarily reflect the position of the member countries or 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 .................................................................................................................. 13 A. URANIUM RESOURCES .................................................................................................... 13 x Identified Resources (previously “Known Conventional Resources”) ..................... 13 x Distribution of Identified Resources by Categories and Cost Ranges ...................... 13 x Distribution of Resources by Production Method..................................................... 19 x Distribution of Resources by Deposit Type .............................................................. 19 x Proximity of Resources to Production Centres ......................................................... 23 x Undiscovered Resources ..........................................................................................