US law bans all uranium imports from Russia
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President Joe Biden has signed a bipartisan bill banning the import of Russian enriched uranium for nuclear power plants, U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan announced on May 13.
This move aims to further restrict funding for the Kremlin regime, he said.
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"President Biden signed into law a historic series of actions that will strengthen our nation’s energy and economic security by reducing — and ultimately eliminating — our reliance on Russia for civilian nuclear power," Sullivan said.
The new law reestablishes America's leadership in the nuclear sector, he said.
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"It will help secure our energy sector for generations to come," Sullivan said. "And — building off the unprecedented $2.72 billion in federal funding that Congress recently appropriated at the President’s request — it will jumpstart new enrichment capacity in the United States and send a clear message to industry that we are committed to long-term growth in our nuclear sector."
The bill will become law 90 days after signing. Some exceptions will be allowed until January 2028. If there are no other sources of supply, the U.S. Energy Department may issue permits for the import of enriched uranium from Russia. The law is set to expire at the end of 2040.
Bloomberg earlier reported that the U.S. Senate unanimously voted to adopt a bill banning the import of enriched uranium from Russia before the document was sent to President Joe Biden for signature.
Russia supplied nearly a quarter of the enriched uranium used as fuel for the U.S. fleet of more than 90 commercial reactors, making it the top foreign supplier. Those sales bring Russia about $1 billion a year.
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Replacing those supplies could prove challenging and risks raising the price of enriched uranium by as much as 20%.
The White House has called for a "long-term ban" on Russian imports, which is needed to unblock about $2.7 billion in support for the domestic uranium industry granted by Congress earlier this year.
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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
