U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY) led six Republican colleagues in calling on the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to stop delaying America’s establishment of a uranium reserve.
“This delay is particularly disturbing as the current situation between Russia and Ukraine has brought to the forefront the vulnerability of the United States’ reliance on Russia, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan for the uranium needed to power our nuclear plants,” the members wrote in an April 1 letter sent to DOE Secretary Jennifer Granholm.
The fact that nearly half of the uranium needed to fuel U.S. nuclear reactors is purchased from Russia and its supporting countries “only serves to highlight the untenable situation we now find ourselves in due to the lack of a stable supply of uranium,” wrote Rep. Cheney and her colleagues, who included U.S. Reps. Dan Newhouse (R-WA), Adam Kinzinger (R-IL), and Michael Burgess (R-TX).
“Our weakened nuclear fuel supply chain is highly vulnerable to disruption from Russia, and we should be taking all steps to eliminate our reliance on them as a global partner in light of the unjustified war they are currently waging,” they wrote. “We strongly urge DOE to move forward and start purchasing domestic uranium for the reserve.”
The representatives also pointed out that it has been 15 months since Congress appropriated $75 million to be used for establishing the reserve. The U.S. also has ample supplies of uranium ready to mine, they wrote, noting that the license, permits, facilities, and storage capacity needed to start the reserve have been obtained.
Rep. Cheney and the lawmakers asked that Granholm answer several questions by April 4, including what the current expected timeline is for DOE to issue a request for proposals (RFP) for the uranium reserve, how long the RFP will remain open for responses, and how long it will take DOE to review the responses before standing-up the uranium reserve.
“The uranium reserve is an important first step toward ensuring a stable supply of uranium for the U.S. power sector and restoring our global position as a leader in nuclear energy,” wrote the lawmakers. “It is imperative that DOE stand-up the uranium reserve as soon as possible. This has become a matter of national, energy and economic security and continued delays are no longer an option.”