ASTANA – Kazakhstan is considering the creation of a state strategic uranium reserve to secure fuel supplies for future nuclear power plants, with a target of reserving at least 150,000 tons of uranium by 2050, Almasadam Satkaliyev, chairman of the Agency for Atomic Energy, said at a parliamentary committee meeting, reported the Kazinform news agency.
The target is outlined in Kazakhstan’s Nuclear Industry Development Strategy through 2050, which also supports the development and approval of a framework for establishing the reserve. Speaking at a meeting of the Kurultai Committee on Economic Policy, Industry and Energy, Satkaliyev said the agency was reviewing its approach to uranium resource management, treating uranium not only as a raw material but also as a strategic resource for the country’s future economic development.
“To ensure that future nuclear power plants have the fuel they need, the creation of a state strategic uranium reserve is under consideration,” Satkaliyev said. The agency is currently developing approaches and mechanisms for building the reserve, taking into account Kazakhstan’s long-term nuclear energy needs.
The proposed reserve would be a multi-layered system covering the entire nuclear fuel supply chain, from setting aside uranium resources in the ground to establishing physical stocks of natural uranium and reserves of ready-to-use nuclear fuel. President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev previously called for the creation of a state strategic uranium reserve in his address to the nation.