ASX uranium shares are posting broad-based gains as the bullish case for nuclear energy gathers momentum.
ASX uranium shares surge on Monday
The largest ASX-listed uranium player, Paladin Energy Ltd (ASX: PDN) is up 8.64% to 88 cents.
Emerging producer Boss Energy Ltd (ASX: BOE) leads the charge, up 9.26% to 29.5 cents.
Advanced Namibia-based explorer Deep Yellow Limited (ASX: DYL) is lagging behind its peers, up 1.9% to $1.07.
The most recently listed uranium explorer, 92 Energy Ltd (ASX: 92E) is also edging higher, up 6.9% to 77.5 cents.
Elsewhere, speculative explorers such as Bannerman Energy Ltd (ASX: BMN), Lotus Resources Ltd (ASX: LOT), Vimy Resources Ltd (ASX: VMY), Peninsula Energy Ltd (ASX: PEN) and Alligator Energy Ltd (ASX: AGE) are posting mixed gains, up between 2.8% and 14.5%.
What's driving the uranium sector?
Surging oil and gas prices and an over-reliance on renewables is positioning nuclear energy as a possible solution that also generates no carbon emissions.
The market has arguably undervalued the potential of nuclear energy following the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster. That nuclear accident drove negative sentiment towards the industry and made governments reluctant to subsidise power plants.
Only in the last few months have governments around the world begun realising the role that nuclear power could play in secure, emission-free power generation.
This has helped uranium prices rally from around US$28/lb to a 9-year high of US$50/lb in mid-September. As well as a sharp re-rate across ASX uranium shares.
According to the Australian Financial Review, Japan's new prime minister, Fumio Kishida, last week said that he wants to restart nuclear reactors, to tackle both energy prices and climate change.
Industry minister Koichi Hagiuda described nuclear power as "indispensable, when we think about how we can ensure a stable and affordable electricity supply while addressing climate change."
The United Kingdom is another country looking to nuclear as a win-win solution for consumers and the environment.
A Financial Times report suggests that the UK government will release the details of its decarbonisation plan and funding model early this week.
"UK ministers will put nuclear power at the heart of Britain's strategy to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 in government documents," it reported.
The improved sentiment towards nuclear energy has helped drive substantial gains across depressed ASX uranium shares, most of which have more than doubled year to date.
