The country covered 20% of America’s nuclear fuel demand last year
Russia is still the leading supplier of nuclear fuel to the US despite an import ban introduced under former President Joe Biden, the US Department of Energy (DOE) has revealed.
According to the agency’s annual uranium marketing report, released on Tuesday, Russia provided 20% of the enriched uranium purchased for American commercial reactors in 2024. France supplied 18%, the Netherlands 15%, Britain 9%, and Germany 7%, while 19% of enriched uranium was produced domestically.
Biden signed the Prohibiting Russian Uranium Imports Act into law in 2024, with the ban formally coming into force in August that year. In retaliation, Moscow imposed a temporary cap on enriched uranium exports to the US in November.
The legislation, however, contains a system of waivers allowing purchases from Russia until 2028 if no alternative supply is available or if the imports are considered strategically important. Bloomberg reported that waivers were granted to Constellation Energy Corp, the largest US nuclear operator, and Centrus Energy Corp, one of only two domestic uranium enrichers.
Although Biden allocated new funds for expanding US enrichment capacity, former Assistant Secretary of State for Energy Resources Geoffrey Pyatt warned in January that it would “take time to build out a non-Russian supply chain.”
Since President Donald Trump returned to the White House this year, Washington and Moscow have reopened direct talks on possible steps to normalize trade relations.
Last month, Rosatom, Russia’s state-run nuclear giant, said it remains the world’s top producer of fuel for nuclear power plants. “We still hold the top position in the world for uranium enrichment,” First Deputy Director General Kirill Komarov stated.
