MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 01st August, 2023) France is not going to face uranium shortage after Niger stopped its uranium and thorium exports to the country as there are plenty of other suppliers, Thierry Mariani, a French member of the European Parliament, told Sputnik.
Following the military coup in Niger, France expressed its support to the country's ousted president, Mohamed Bazoum, and suspended financial aid to Niger "until constitutional order is restored." The rebels, on their part, banned uranium and gold exports to France.
"There is not and will not be a shortage of uranium in France, following the cessation of ore exports from Niger. In terms of nuclear energy, it should be noted that uranium is abundant on the planet and deposits are distributed throughout the world," Mariani said, adding that thorium is also not rare in the world.
Moreover, the Orano group, a French nuclear fuel cycle company, has approximately a 10-year reserve stock of uranium and the ability to purchase it all over the world, he added.
"Over the past 20 years, the first sources of uranium, each of more than 20,000 tonnes over the period, have been Kazakhstan, then Australia, then Niger and Uzbekistan. But there are other sources, other mines partly owned by the French Orano company, in Namibia, Canada, South Africa, Kyrgyzstan, Brazil or Ukraine and elsewhere," Mariani noted.
Furthermore, the demand for uranium in the world is not very high, as number of nuclear power plants worldwide is limited, the parliamentarian added.
"In France, to operate its 56 nuclear reactors spread over 18 power plants, EDF (Electricite de France, a French state-owned electric utility company) needs 8,000 to 10,000 tonnes of natural uranium each year. They can be easily obtained without the contribution of Niger," Mariani said.
The bigger issue for France is the imports of enriched uranium, as Russia, with whom Europe has political tension, holds a significant part of the market, the parliamentarian noted.
Russia can also profit from the French decision to cut financial aid to Niger, Mariani said.
"On the political level, the management of the crisis by (French) President (Emmanuel) Macron and the evolution of the Niger file are a disaster for France... We had to discuss. Niger received from France in development aid, a ridiculously low amount of 140 million Euros ($154,5 million) per year. It has now been stopped. This means that France can easily be replaced by any power, in three minutes, by Russia or China for example," the politician warned, noting that the sum is much less than the financial aid to Ukraine of 510 million euros a month.
Mariani called the policy of the French president concerning Africa wrong, as it, in his opinion, weakens France's position on the continent.
On July 26, members of the Nigerien presidential guard said in a statement broadcast on national television that they had overthrown the president, closed borders and imposed a curfew in the country "until further notice." It came hours after the presidential guard detained the president at his residence and sealed off access to public offices in the capital Niamey.
