US uranium mining: No rebound in sight

US uranium production has fallen eight-fold in the last decade with no rebound in sight, says former industry executive J.R. Wolcott of Denver, Colorado. Production has dropped from more than 40 million pounds per year in 1980 to less than 5 million pounds, and the price has skidded from a high of $40 per pound in the late 1950s to less than $8 today, Wolcott notes. The cause of the dramatic turnaround is rather simple: The military no longer buys uranium, leaving commercial nuclear power as the only customer, and no new nuclear power plants have been ordered in 15 years. Adding to these dismal circumstances is the low quality of US ore deposits, a compared to the rich deposits found overseas. open-quotes All in all,close quotes Wolcott says, open-quotes world markets are awash with uranium. The United States is unlikely to regain its former position as a major supplier.close quotes Wolcott is not convinced the former Soviet Union's entry into the international uranium market has been a major factor in the US decline, despite charges of open-quotes dumpingclose quotes by the former Soviet states. Regardless of the outcome of the open-quotes dumpingclose quotes charges, he says, open-quotes The realistic outlook is for a continuation of a small domestic uranium industry, perhaps near its present level. However, substantial relief is unlikely. The domestic mining industry cannot expect to expand any time soon.close quotes