Amid soaring electricity demand, energy security concerns and geopolitical tensions, the US is once again turning its attention to nuclear power. With that comes the ambition to revitalise US uranium production.
In May, President Trump signed four executive orders intended to directly support nuclear energy deployment.
Key measures include regulatory reforms to facilitate the expansion of US nuclear power capacity from around 100GW today to 400GW by 2050, as well as goals to deploy the first advanced reactor at a US military base by 2028.
In the nearer term, the US Department of Energy must also prioritise work to facilitate 5GW of power uprates to existing nuclear reactors and have ten new large reactors under construction by 2030, with significant additional demand coming from AI hyperscalers that are set to solidify the demand for nuclear power and its uranium fuel for decades to come.
However, US utilities currently import more than 95% of their uranium concentrate, including a significant share from countries like Russia and Kazakstan, posing a potential threat to security of supply.
Driven by a pressing need to fortify energy security and reduce reliance on foreign suppliers, the US is now embarking on a substantial expansion of its uranium industry. Mining Technology’s parent company, GlobalData, says that by the end of 2030, its projections indicate a “dramatic increase” in the US share of global uranium output, potentially reaching 7.5% – up from a mere 0.7% in 2024.
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By GlobalDataEagle Energy Metals, a uranium-focused company with rights to Aurora – the largest mineable, measured and indicated uranium deposit in the US – is looking to position itself as a leading domestic supplier.
However, the company also has broader ambitions – and has announced its intetion to go public through a SPAC merger with Spring Valley Acquisition Corp. II.
CEO Mark Mukhija, who has almost two decades of global mining experience with majors including Teck, Barrick and BHP, speaks to Mining Technology about Eagle’s flagship 50-million-pound (mlb) uranium project, Aurora, as well as the company’s bold vision to support energy-intensive sectors such as AI, data centres and crypto with its small modular reactor (SMR) technology.
Caroline Peachey (CP): What are the main factors driving increased interest in bolstering domestic uranium production in the US?
Mark Mukhija (MM): All the recent attention on nuclear power is putting that attention onto to uranium as well. According to the executive orders that came out in late May, the US wants to quadruple its nuclear energy capacity by 2050.
You also have this influx of AI, quantum computing and cryptocurrencies that is going to drive electricity demand further. People are starting to realise that wind and solar won’t be able to provide that reliable baseload supply with where that future is going. So, a lot of focus is coming on to uranium, because that is what drives nuclear reactors.
CP: Eagle has been involved in the Aurora uranium project since last year. Could you talk a bit about your development plans for that project?
MM: We were quite fortunate to pick up the rights to the Aurora project in Oregon, which is the largest mineable, measured and indicated uranium deposit in the US with a resource of 50.6mlb [19,500 tonnes of uranium (tU) based on 107.3 million tonnes at 214 parts per million triuranium oxcotide], according to the Australian JORC standard.
Every year the US consumes 50mlb of uranium concentrate, but in 2024, the country only produced 677,000 pounds (lb), according to the US Energy Information Administration. In 2023, it was only 50,000lb. You can see how much foreign reliance there is on uranium, so a project of Aurora’s size and magnitude is going to be critical, given the national security and energy independence views.
We have a clear pathway to development for Aurora, and the administrative tailwinds are really going to be beneficial for us with this project.
CP: What are the next steps for the Aurora project?
MM: The major step we are going to be focusing on is completing the baseline studies. There is a lot that needs to be done, and we have to ensure that we get it completed on time and on budget. From there, it gives us the ability to apply for an exploration plan of operations or a mine plan of operations.
Those baseline studies could take anywhere from 12 to 18 months, but that doesn’t stop the work on the project either. We can charge forward with our detailed engineering studies, such as a pre-feasibility study, which we plan to commence in 2026.
(Editor note: The PFS would be followed by a definitive feasibility study with completion anticipated in late 2028, according to a recent company presentation.)
CP: What are the main barriers to producing uranium in the US and how are you navigating those challenges?
MM: I would say the biggest barrier for uranium producers in the US will always come down to the permitting; it is a long process to get mines permitted. But we are hoping that the administrative push with these executive orders that we have seen around boosting critical mineral supply and decreasing foreign reliance on importing uranium from regions such as Russia and Kazakhstan will change that.
As a mining company, we still have to make sure we do things the right way. We are very focused on making sure we have all of those baseline studies and environmental assessments completed, but we want to see this mine come into production someday as well.
CP: Can you tell us how some of the recent policy decisions or federal initiatives have impacted your company’s plans?
MM: We are starting to see mining projects go on to the FAST-41 dashboard [FAST-41 is a federal infrastructure permitting initiative established under Title 41 of the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act].
There was an executive order to boost US mineral production [in March], and a part of that was to identify projects that end up on a dashboard, which leads to increased transparency and faster timelines. We have seen two other projects in our same county [the McDermitt lithium exploration project (Jindalee Lithium) and the Grassy Mountain gold project (Paramount Gold Nevada)] identified on this list.
We believe that once we get our baseline studies completed and our permits in, [the Aurora project] will be identified on these dashboards, given the importance of uranium to the US.
(Editor note: Other uranium projects included on the FAST-41 list include Laramide Resources’ La Jara Mesa and Churchrock projects and Uranium Energy’s Sweetwater Uranium Complex.)
CP: Do you believe more needs to be done to support domestic uranium producers?
MM: I think more needs to be done [considering] how important nuclear energy is going to be and just how much [the US] is relying on foreign nations to get uranium. Currently, around half of the US’ uranium imports come from Canada and Australia, with the remainder from Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Russia. Part of the executive orders in May was the invoking of the Defense Production Act; that is how important it is to rebuild the US domestic supply chain.
There has been chronic underinvestment in uranium since Fukushima [a nuclear accident in Japan in March 2011]. Uranium prices came down, and there wasn’t enough exploration work, permitting work or new supply coming online. Now, we are in this golden age of nuclear, but we need the uranium to power that.
We are seeing these executive orders come down – and that is a great step – but, right now, they are more focused on nuclear fuel supply. I think it is just a matter of time before we start seeing even more focus upstream onto the uranium side of things.
CP: Looking ahead, with the anticipated growth of SMRs supporting AI/data centres, how do you see uranium market dynamics changing?
MM: We are already starting to see a supply deficit forming when it comes to uranium. US demand alone is at 50mlb per year now. The administration was talking about quadrupling nuclear power by 2050. If that were to happen, that is 200mlb per year just in the US, or equivalent to the entire global demand today.
On top of that, China is doing a massive nuclear buildout right now, looking to add about 150 reactors in the next decade – and they don’t produce uranium either. This is going to put a lot of stress on the entire uranium sector around the world, especially Western supply. You see [China’s] alignment with Russia and Kazakhstan, and that supply, which was once coming west, is now starting to flow east. That is going to put a huge strain on the entire nuclear fuel supply chain.
We are starting to see long-term prices tick up, and as this supply demand deficit starts to grow, it is only going to add more pressure upwards to uranium prices. So, I do see a future with higher spot and higher long-term prices coming in the next five years.
CP: In addition to the Aurora and Cordex uranium assets, Eagle already owns SMR technology. Where is the company looking to position itself within the supply chain?
MM: We are definitely not just a uranium company; we are building an integrated nuclear company. We want to build the backbone of the US’ clean energy, and it is really exciting that we have this SMR technology. What differentiates us [Eagle Energy Metals] is that we have fuel supply as well. It is going to be difficult to get uranium, but for us to have that line of sight onto supply is such a big deal.
CP: Tell us more about the SMR technology – what stage is it at and what are its potential applications?
MM: We have two different reactors in concept design. One is a microreactor [the Eagle VSLLIM, a sodium-cooled fast reactor], which is up to 3.3 megawatts electrical (MWe) in capacity. Then, there is a small modular reactor [Eagle SLLIM] that is up to 33MWe.
We are able to cover a broad range of applications; the smaller design is great for remote communities, mine sites and military applications, and the larger one is for larger communities, or that data centre demand, which we see really taking off here [in the US].
There is a global resurgence for nuclear power. More than 30 countries are wanting to triple their nuclear power capacity by 2050, so it is not just a US story. All these countries are starting to realise that nuclear is carbon-free, reliable, baseload energy, and it is just going to put pressure on uranium that goes into these reactors.
