Nuclear workers in Kazakhstan are confident in the long-term growth in demand for uranium
In 2020, the demand for uranium in the global market fell due to the pandemic. But in the long term, demand will continue to grow. This forecast was made at the online briefing by Kamila Syzdykova, member of the Board, Chief Director for Economics and Finance of NAC Kazatomprom JSC, transmits MIA Kazinform.
“Last year was interesting from the point of view of the uranium market. Taking into account the suspension of production and a decrease in operating activity by uranium producers in 2020, in general, there was a shortage of supply on the market. The pandemic has also accelerated the consumption of global stocks. But, despite the fact that 2020 ended with a shortage of supply, the market is still quite calm. Nevertheless, we are confident that the demand for uranium will continue to grow in the long term, ”she said.
According to Syzdykova, it is difficult to predict how much the demand for uranium will grow in the coming years, since the balance of supply and demand depends on many factors: on the input and output of reactors, on the behavior of producers.
“At some factories, production has been suspended due to the impact of the pandemic, but we see a fairly stable trend in consumption from the main players - about 180 million pounds per year. Over the past decade, demand has fluctuated in this range as a whole: it dipped from 2011 to 2015 and rebounded from 2017 to 2020. It is difficult to say any specific growth figures now, ”she explained.