The French Orano will invest up to 500 million dollars in uranium mining and processing in Uzbekistan, the Minister of Mining and Geology Bobur Islamov announced at the Verona Eurasian Economic Forum.
The minister noted that the country has signed an agreement on strategic partnership with Orano. The French company is currently conducting geological exploration, and the preliminary technical and economic basis of the project will be developed by the end of this year.
"The strategic agreement states that there will be two additional fields [in the Tomdi district of the Navoi region] where [Orano] will conduct geological exploration. All of course the feasibility study will be decided, so far everything is going well. The total amount of investment is set at 500 million dollars in the contract," Islamov said.
According to the minister, the current uranium production volumes have already found buyers. As the production volume of nuclear fuel increases, Uzbekistan will decide on export proceeding from the prices, he added.
"Regardless of who we collaborate with on uranium, all will be based on world prices. "If the price goes up, everything depends on the formula and our delivery price will go up," concluded the minister.
Islamov added that the export of uranium in all areas had increased this year and emphasized the importance of diversifying the supply.
