Uranium 101

Over the past 10 years,
nuclear has been the fastest growing source of electricity generation worldwide.
Today, there are more than 400 reactors operating in 33 countries worldwide with about 30 under construction. These reactors, at present, produce as much electricity as all of the hydro stations taken together. Countries such as France have been using Nuclear Power for 80% of its power needs. More and more countries such as Germany have mandated Nuclear as its first clean choice for its power needs

Nuclear remains a very important option when electricity generation is needed because:

● Nuclear is cost competitive Statistics from the US and Canada show that nuclear electricity is consistently the cheapest after hydro. ● Nuclear is clean Contrary to fossil fuel, nuclear electricity does not contribute to air pollution or carbon dioxide emissions. ● Nuclear costs are predictable The cost of generating nuclear electricity is not very sensitive to the price of its fuel material: uranium. Uranium is one of the more common elements in the Earth's crust - it is more common than tin, about 40 times more common than silver and 500 times more common than gold.

Still, the uranium industry remains a mystery to many in the general public and often even to industry analysts.

This section gives you links to the Uranium mining industry, its major players, and demonstrates how uranium fits into the nuclear fuel cycle. It also helps you understand at a basic level what uranium is, what radiation is, how it compares to other forms of power, and how it is being mined safely throughout the world.