Shares in Australian uranium companies are surging after US Energy Secretary Chris Wright said his government was hoping to see "rapid growth" in consumption of the nuclear fuel, and that the country needed to move away from reliance on Russian-enriched uranium.
It also followed the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) revising up its projections for the expansion of nuclear power for the fifth year in a row.
In the high case projection, the IAEA estimates that global nuclear operational capacity will more than double by 2050 – reaching 2.6 times the 2024 level – with small modular reactors (SMRs) expected to play a pivotal role in this expansion.
The IAEA said at the end of 2024, there were 417 operational nuclear reactors, with a global capacity of 377 gigawatts electric (GW(e)).
In the high case projection, nuclear electrical generating capacity is projected to increase to 992 GW(e) by 2050. In the low case projection, capacity rises 50% to 561 GW(e), compared with 2024. SMRs are projected to account for 24% of the new capacity added in the high case and for 5% in the low case.
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US doubling down on nuclear
Meanwhile, speaking to Bloomberg News in Vienna on the sidelines of the IAEA's annual conference, Mr Wright said the US needed to become less dependent on Russian uranium.
"We hope to see rapid growth in uranium consumption in the US from both large reactors and small modular reactors," Mr Wright told Bloomberg News. "The size of that right buffer would grow with time. We need a lot of domestic uranium and enrichment capacity."
The US government set aside funding in 2020 to set up a strategic uranium reserve to ensure the nation would have sufficient supplies of the energy source.
Shares in ASX-listed uranium companies Deep Yellow Limited (ASX: DYL) and Boss Energy Limited (ASX: BOE) raced higher on the bullish projections on Tuesday, with project developer Deep Yellow's stock 9.7% higher at $2.09 and Boss Energy's stock 8.1% higher at $1.99.
Boss Energy operates the Honeymoon Uranium Mine in South Australia.
