With the world progressively sensitive to global warming, the news that 2010 was a record year for greenhouse gases levels was yet another undesirable milestone. The thorium fuel cycle, with its potential for breeding fuel without the need for fast neutron reactors, holds some potential in the long term sustainability of nuclear energy.
Interviewed last week on Business News Network, Chief Executive Officer and president Michael Gunning said only Cameco (TSE:CCO)(NYSE:CCJ) and Areva Group’s (EPA:CEI) McArthur River and Cigar Lake mines have larger deposits.
Reuters Africa reports Areva (EPA:CEI) is looking for a partner for its Namibian uranium project to start mining.
At a critical time where political leadership vacuums have capital markets and world governments holding their collective breath, concern over the security of energy sources has touched a nuclear nerve.
This year may become a record breaking year for spot volume as only one other year, 1990, has seen this level of activity. The uranium spot market price is $61.75 per pound, up 29 percent from the $48.00 range in September and an increase of nearly 52 percent from $40.75 range in June. The spot price reached a recent low of $40.50 March 2010.
The market valuation of Canadian companies with one or more uranium projects has appreciated approximately 22 percent over the past month and up 43 percent over the previous 12 months. Share prices of Australian companies with one or more uranium projects have also performed relatively strongly with an 18 percent increase over the past month and 18 percent over the past 12 months.
With known uranium resources of 499,000 tonnes of U3O8, as well as increasing exploration projects on the horizon, Canada is certain to maintain a significant role in meeting future global demand.
Argentina's electric power generation currently employs uranium-based nuclear power generation for 6.8 percent of its capacity; however, the government expects that to rise to 21.1 percent by 2025. The goal is for nuclear power to be part of an expansion in generating capacity to meet rising demand. Since 2003, Argentina has increased its total power generation capacity by about 30 percent to 24,000 megawatts.
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