As questions and investigations about Russian influence in our election process continue, what many Americans may not realize is that adversarial countries, like Russia, stand to have an outsized influence over our power grid.
Uranium, which is on an Interior Department target list of critical minerals, fuels nuclear power plants, which generate 20 percent of electricity in the United States. It also helps power U.S. Navy assets. One pound of uranium is equivalent to 20,000 pounds of coal. Currently, much of the U.S. uranium demand is filled by Russia, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.
Now, two Colorado-based uranium mining companies, Ur-Energy and Energy Fuels, are awaiting word on a petition for relief they filed with the U.S. Commerce Department to investigate whether uranium imports from places such as Russia pose a national security risk.
According to a report this month from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), U.S. production of uranium concentrate in the first quarter 2018 was down 64 percent since from the fourth quarter 2017 and it was also down 50 percent compared to the same time a year ago (first quarter 2017).
Ur-Energy CEO Jeffrey Klenda said the shrinking U.S. piece of the uranium supply chain costs jobs.
“Over the last three years, both of us have had to reduce our workforces by an excess of 50 percent,” he said. “The harsh reality is we have now been reduced in this country, to a level of production that have not been seen since 1950.” – READ MORE
[give_form id=”79809″] [contentcards url=”http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2018/05/26/us-will-decide-whether-uranium-from-countries-like-russia-pose-national-security-risk.html” target=”_blank”]