Brazil’s Push for Uranium Enrichment: What’s Happening and Why It Matters

Brazil’s state nuclear company, Indústrias Nucleares do Brasil (INB), plans to spend R$7 ($1.3) billion to build a new uranium enrichment plant in Resende, Rio de Janeiro.

This move aims to help Brazil stop sending uranium abroad for processing and instead meet its own nuclear fuel needs at home. Right now, Brazil’s existing plant can only enrich enough uranium for about 40% of one nuclear reactor, Angra 1.

The rest of the fuel for Angra 1 and all of Angra 2 must go overseas, mainly to Russia, for enrichment. INB wants to add thirty new enrichment units, or cascades, over the next ten years.

This would allow Brazil to supply all three of its nuclear reactors, including the planned Angra 3, with about 850 tonnes of enriched uranium per year. Brazil’s own engineers and scientists developed the technology for these enrichment machines.

This homegrown expertise means Brazil does not have to rely on foreign technology, making the country more independent in a critical industry. INB does not have enough money for this expansion, so it has launched a program called Pró-Urânio.

Through this, INB is offering mining rights in four areas across the states of Paraná, Goiás, and Paraíba. The company expects to raise R$15 billion over twelve years from these partnerships.

Brazil Eyes Nuclear Market Expansion with New Uranium Projects

Companies from Russia and China have already shown interest in these new mining projects. Brazil currently has only one working uranium mine, in Caetité, Bahia, which produces about 340 tonnes per year.

Another project in Santa Quitéria, Ceará, could produce 2,300 tonnes per year, but it still needs environmental approval and is not expected to start until 2028 or 2029.

Brazil is one of the few countries in the world that can handle every step of the nuclear fuel process, from mining to enrichment. This gives Brazil a strategic edge, especially since many other uranium-rich regions face conflict or instability.

As the world looks for more stable and reliable sources of nuclear fuel, Brazil’s position becomes even more important. By investing in uranium enrichment, Brazil wants to secure its energy supply, keep more of the nuclear business at home, and attract new investment.

This is a clear business move to strengthen the country’s role in the global nuclear market and ensure it controls a vital part of its energy future.

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