- Deal is intended to use the enormous uranium reserves of Tanzania as an engine for economic growth, industrial development and future prospects for clean energy.
- Project includes a 20-year plan to extract and process an estimated 300,000 tonnes of uranium.
- The construction is planned to start in the first quarter of 2026, planned for 2029 with commissioning.
The Russian state-owned companies Rosatom has launched a $ 1.2 billion uranium extraction partner with Tanzania, one of the most ambitious investments in the East African nation. The project is intended to tap the enormous uranium reserves of Tanzania to stimulate economic growth, industrial development and outlook on clean energy.
President Samia Suluhu Hassan was chairman of the inauguration of an uranium processing factory of $ 400 million on the MKUJU River Project site last week, which indicates the operational start of a wider 20-year plan to extract and process an estimated 300,000 tons of uranium.
“This project reflects Tanzania’s dedication to make use of its natural resources in a responsible manner to support sustainable development,” said President Hassan during the launch.
Rosatam Advanced Uranium Processing
Speaking, the director -general of the Rosatom State CorporationSaid Alexey Likhachev that the company offered its advanced uranium processing technologies to develop Tanzania’s unique geological potential.
“As with all our partners, we plan to build cooperation with the Republic on the basis of equality and mutual understanding.”
“At the same time, Rosatom is always led in his activities by the principles of sustainable development with unconditional compliance with high environmental and social standards. We will gladly help Tanzania to take an important step towards integration in the global nuclear energy industry,” he added.
The factory, located in the southern region of Namtumbo, is the first of its kind in Tanzania and an important part of the government’s strategy to diversify mineral exports and to take advantage of the rising global demand for low -low energy sources.
The factory, located on the Nyota deposit, will be used to test uranium processing technologies and to inform the design of the main processing complex with a production capacity of up to 3000 tonnes of uranium per year. The construction is planned to start in the first quarter of 2026, planned for 2029 with commissioning.
The official ceremony for the commissioning of the pilot plant was attended by government officials under the leadership of Samia Suluhu Hassan, the president of Tanzania, who said: “This is a milestone performance for our country. For the first time, Tanzania is a strategic and Estentense map with the Capacity with the Capacity with the Capacity with the Capacity with the Capacity with the Capacity with the Capacity with the Effense Map with the Capacity Map with the Capacity Map with the Capacity Map with the Capacity Made -Steneration worldwide. “
Clean energy
According to the Ministry of Minerals of Tanzania, the “strategic project has been set up to” transform the country’s mining and energy landscape “, opening new doors for foreign investments, solutions for clean energy and high-quality technological progress”.
It said that the government has a 20 percent interest “expected to earn $ 40 million annually from dividends, channeled into national development projects”, and hundreds of direct and indirect jobs would be created.
It stated that Tanzania will take the list of the top 10 uranium -producing countries.
Alexey Likhachev, director -general of Rosatom, said that the company helped to develop the “unique geological potential of Tanzania … As with all our partners, we plan to build cooperation with the Republic on the basis of equality and mutual understanding.
At the same time, Rosatom is always led in its activities by the principles of sustainable development with unconditional compliance with high environmental and social standards. We will be happy to help Tanzania take an important step in the direction of integration in the global nuclear energy industry ”.
The proposed environmental protection system for the project includes real-time ecosystem monitoring, water supply systems with a closed-run with water recycling and programs for retaining biodiversity, Rosatom said.
The Mkuju River Project is owned by Mantra Tanzania Ltd. and is located in the Namtumbo district of the Ruvuma region. Mantra Tanzania is part of Rosatom -daughter Uranium One Group, an international mining group of companies that also have assets in Kazakhstan and Namibia
Rosatom is present for a long time in Africa Bezuiden De Sahara and supplies enriched uranium to the only nuclear power plant of the Continent-de Koeberg Nuclear Power Station in South Africa and supports nuclear education through university partnerships.
Since Africa focuses on 15 GW nuclear capacity by 2035, more than 10 countries are investigating nuclear energy with a strong dependence on global partners such as Rosatom.
In Tanzania, Rosatom, through his subsidiary Mantra Resources, has led the MKUJU River Uranium project since 2020 under a special mining license.
The project is operated by Uranium One and is one of the largest in the world, with 152 million tons of ore. It is intended to produce 5 tons of yellow cake during pilot operations and to scale up a maximum of 3,000 tons each year.
Officials say that the project could create thousands of jobs, attract further foreign investments and improve the energy security of the country. However, environmental activists and social organizations have expressed concern about radioactive waste management, water safety and potential relocation of nearby communities.
Despite these concerns, the Tanzanian government insists that the company complies with the international security and environmental standards.
By adapting to Rosatom, Tanzania joins a growing number of African countries that turn to global nuclear forces to develop strategic minerals that are crucial for the global energy transition.
Since Uranium goes the prominent back on the back of renewed interest in nuclear energy, the MKUJU River project could position Tanzania and an important player in the future energy supply chain – both regionally and internationally.
Russia has announced restrictions for the export of enriched uranium to the US. The temporary ban is a response to American limitations to the import of Russian uranium products that came into effect earlier this year.
The Russian government announced the prohibition on its official website on 15 November as a change from the government decision no. 313 of 9 March 2022. It covers “to the United States or under foreign trade contracts concluded with persons registered in the jurisdiction of the United States”. Exemptions are made for deliveries under one -off licenses issued by the Russian Federal Service for Technical and Export Control
Prohibition of the import of Russian Uranium Products
A decision was made about the president’s instructions in response to the limitation imposed by the United States before 2024-2027, and from 2028 a ban on importing Russian uranium products, “said the Russian government,” said the Russian government. “Vladimir Putin has instructed to analyze the possibility of limiting the supplies of the foreign markets of strategic raw materials in September.”
According to the Tass press office, the Russian state of Nuclear Corporation Rosatom said that the prohibition was legal and the expected “tit-for-tat response to actions by the American authorities”. Deliveries of Russian uranium to countries other than the US “will continue without changes, on conditions agreed with customers and subject to requirements of national laws,” said Rosatom.
Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov van Kremlin told Tass to the Tass that “in cases where our interests, the Russian Federal Service for Technical and Export Control can decide to exclude certain items from this list of prohibitions”, but said that the government had assessed the implications and consequences of the “absolute reciprocal” anticipations. “But the most important point is that this must fully tailor to our interests and not to undermine them. That is the basis for what was done,” he said.
US President Joe Biden signed the ban on Russian Uranium Imports Act in May after the bill was unanimously adopted by the US Senate. The prohibition will be in force in August and will last until the end of 2040. Waiting can be granted to enable the import of limited amounts of Russian-Origin Leu, under certain circumstances, until 1 January 2028.
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