Rebound In Uranium Miners in 2013?
There seems to be a perception that Japan and Germany which has cut back on nuclear following the Fukushima disaster could sell its surplus uranium into the market. The Russia HEU program where nuclear missiles were converted to nuclear fuel is set to expire by the end of 2013. This is about 24 million pounds of uranium supply that could be offset by Japan and Germany’s excess supply.
However, it is unlikely that the Japanese and Germans will exit nuclear for one reason…soaring electricity costs which are crippling their industries and GDP.
The Japanese have just bought 23 hydrogen re-combiners from Areva to update nuclear reactors with new safety features. The fact that the Japanese are investing in nuclear shows that they are serious about turning reactors back on. Japan is headed into an election in December where the opposition party who is pro nuclear is leading the polls. Will this be the catalyst to spark a rebound in the spot uranium prices?
