centrals

Uranium, for years relegated to a corner of the raw material market, Live a rebirth. His prices have shot themselves and investors chase him with enthusiasm, convinced that nuclear energy will be key in an electrified world. As Jennifer Hughes said in the Financial Times: “Investors in Uranium and scientists should have much in common: both seek great benefits from a small starting point.” However, this financial euphoria collides with an awkward reality: nuclear power plants are not built to the necessary rhythm and bottlenecks are huge. A small and overwhelmed market. The spot price is around 76 dollars per pound, After having exceeded $ 100 at the beginning of 2024. Much of this increase is explained by a small market: most uranium is sold under long -term contracts and the immediate market space is very narrow. At the same time, governments accumulate strategic reserves. In the podcast Stock Movers Bloomberg They detailed that The US Secretary of Energy, Chris Wright, wants to strengthen national inventories to reduce Russia dependence, which provides a room of enriched uranium that feeds the 94 US reactors. The result is clear: more uranium is purchased than the centrals can consume today, a sign that the geopolitical and financial appetite goes ahead of the real capacity. A spark that lights nuclear fever. Why this boom? The explanation is in global electrification. According to Bank of America analysts, by the end of this decade the world consumption of electricity will increase to 30%driven by the electrification of transport and the rise of AI data centers. According to the International Energy Agencythe data centers already consume about 415 twh per year – 1.5% of global electricity – and their weight will continue to grow with the expansion of AI. In fact, Nvidia, Microsoft, Google, among others need abundant, reliable and carbon free energy to support their operations. Hence, technology companies have taken an unusual step: Bet on nuclear. The turn of many countries. Nuclear energy has returned strongly, even in countries that had a firm predisposition to the closure. Germany He stopped his nuclear blackout plan and Belgium made the same decision. Indonesia, despite its wealth in coal, included nuclear in An energy investment plan of 235,000 million dollars. And the United States He has decided to quadruple nuclear capacity recycling uranium. Today there are about 440 reactors in operation in the worldwhich contribute about 10% of global electricity and are the second low carbon energy source after hydroelectric. The wall of reality: the deadlines. Political promises collide with industrial limitations. The projects are usually expensive and slow, with deadlines that do not fit with the climatic urgency. To this are added concerns about radioactive waste and fear of accidents such as Fukushima, Although even Japan is willing to return. In fact, in the US, only three reactors have been built in the last quarter of a century, two of them with exorbitant costs and significant delays. Today there is no plant under construction and to meet the objectives of Washington it would be necessary to initiate the works of 20 medium -sized reactors every year, According to Morgan Stanley calculations. Even China, famous for its speed When he decides to investit takes between five and ten years to design, approve and complete a new plant. Russia, the bottleneck of the nuclear cycle. The big problem is in the phase of the nuclear cycle that converts the mineral into useful fuel. There, Russia is the dominant actor. Although countries such as Australia (28%of world reserves), Kazakhstan (13%) and Canada (10%) large uranium deposits concentrateonly Russia Master the enrichment on a global scale. Canada emerges as an alternative. With mines in the Athabasca basin, the country not only extracts but can also enrich uranium, which makes it a “safe and reliable” supplier. His new mine, operated by Nexgen, could move to Kazakhstan as the world leader of production in the next decade. For its part, this last country accelerate your own nuclear plans. Kazakhstan has among his plans to build his first central in ülken, with financial support from Russia but technological alliances with France and South Korea, in an attempt to reduce the dependence of the Kremlin. Expectations ahead of reality. Uranium has gone from being a forgotten resource to become a central file of the energy and geopolitical board. Prices reflect it and investors bet strongly. But nuclear infrastructure slowly advance, the dependence of Russia in the fuel cycle continues to weigh and social resistances remain alive. As the energy expert warns in its columnwho invest in Uranium expect “too much, too soon.” The true nuclear energy boom, if it arrives, will take much more than a rebound in contributions. Image | Freepik Xataka | The largest nuclear fusion project on the planet has survived the setbacks. This is the date on which Iter should be ready