President Joe Biden’s administration is investigating a notable increase in enriched uranium imports from China to the U.S., which began in late 2023.
This inquiry is spurred by concerns that these imports might be helping Moscow circumvent a U.S. ban on Russian uranium, aimed at impairing President Vladimir Putin’s war funding capabilities in Ukraine.
U.S. House lawmakers enacted the ban on Russian enriched uranium in December 2023 as part of broader sanctions against Russia.
That same month, imports from China surged to 242,990 kilograms (535,700 lb), a significant rise given that there were no imports from China to the U.S. from 2020 to 2022, according to data from the U.S. International Trade Commission.
In May, the same month Biden signed the ban, China sent another large shipment to the U.S. totaling 123,894 kilograms (273,139 lb).
The U.S. Department of Energy, along with other relevant agencies, is closely monitoring these imports. “The U.S. Department of Energy along with other relevant agencies is closely tracking imports from China to ensure the proper implementation of the recently enacted Prohibiting Russian Uranium Imports Act,” said a department spokesperson.
This scrutiny extends to ensuring that imports from China and other nations do not involve Russian uranium, which might be disguised as domestically produced material.
China’s imports of Russian uranium had already soared in 2022 and 2023, raising suspicions about Beijing’s motives, given its expanding nuclear program and the potential to re-export the fuel.
“As China may be seeking to carve out a greater role for itself in world enriched uranium markets, increased imports of Russian enriched uranium may facilitate the pursuit of Beijing’s ambitions,” stated a March report by the Royal United Services Institute.
The U.S. uranium industry has expressed concerns over these imports. In June, Centrus, a company enhancing its uranium enrichment capacity, advocated for higher tariffs on Chinese uranium imports, suggesting an increase from 7.5% to 20%.
The Uranium Producers of America proposed an even steeper increase, up to 50%.
These industry moves underscore worries about potential circumvention of the ban, which not only undermines U.S. sanctions but could also weaken efforts to establish a domestic uranium supply chain. This initiative was bolstered by a $2.72 billion federal funding injection following the ban’s implementation.
Despite the U.S. Trade Representative finalizing tariff increases on other goods recently, adjustments for uranium imports from China have yet to be addressed.
Concerns of policy circumvention were so significant that in July, the Uranium Producers of America met with the U.S. Commerce Department to discuss these issues. “Gaming the ban is what we are concerned about,” said Jon Indall, counsel for the UPA. “We would not like to see that we turn off the Russian tap and all of a sudden we see all this material coming from China.”