The current situation of uranium mining in Hungary

The paper describes the history of uranium production in Hungary. It focuses on the Mecsek Ore Mining Company, now known as Mecsekuran Limited, and its relationship with the Hungarian Government. From the start of uranium production in 1963 until May 1989 all production was exported to the Soviet Union under a bilateral contract. In exchange the Soviet Union agreed to provide fabricated fuel for the future Hungarian nuclear power plant. In May 1989 the Government of Hungary announced closure of its uranium mining operations because of the high cost of production. The paper describes the history of events since 1989, as well as the current plans to terminate all uranium production by 31 December 1997. The Mecsek Mountains lie in the southern part of Hungary, west from the Danube, about 30 km from the former Yugoslavian border, and north from the city of Pecs. Its eastern side is built up from medieval limestone and dolomites, while the western part is from sandstone and clay from the geological Paleozoic. In the eastern part high quality cokeable coal has been mined for more than 200 years, east from the city of Pecs; and in the western part uranium ore was discovered and the mining began only a few decades ago. (author)