The ban on imports of enriched uranium from Russia will help drive investments into the domestic market, according to Urenco, the company which operates the United States' only enrichment facility.
U.S. President Joe Biden signed a ban on Russian enriched uranium into law on Monday, with the ban to take effect on Aug. 11. There are provisions for waivers in case nuclear power plants have supply issues.
The ban will also help investment decisions for high assay low enriched uranium, which doesn't yet have a commercial market, Urenco said on Tuesday.
The law unlocks about $2.7 billion in funding in previous legislation to build out the U.S. uranium fuel industry, at a time when nearly 20% of the country's energy needs are met by nuclear energy.
"The legislation provides for a rational transition ... and includes appropriate considerations for certain situations where alternative supply is not available," said Cameco (CCO.TO), the world's largest uranium miner by market value.
Domestic enrichment capacity supplies only 30% of fuel needs, with the U.S. importing over 20% of enriched uranium from Russia, according to a U.S. House of Representatives report in December 2023.
Urenco's announcement last July to expand its operations in New Mexico and French nuclear fuel specialist Orano's studying of a plan to build a uranium enrichment plant in the United States were some of the signs that the domestic industry is growing, Maria Korsnick, head of the Nuclear Energy Institute, the industry's lobby group, said on Tuesday.
There are 94 operational nuclear reactors in the United States, many of which are reaching the end of their 40-year lifespans.
