{"id":39225,"date":"2024-12-07T22:24:12","date_gmt":"2024-12-08T03:24:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/world\/how-a-uranium-mine-became-a-pawn-in-the-row-between-niger-and-france\/07\/12\/2024\/"},"modified":"2024-12-07T22:24:12","modified_gmt":"2024-12-08T03:24:12","slug":"how-a-uranium-mine-became-a-pawn-in-the-row-between-niger-and-france","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/world\/how-a-uranium-mine-became-a-pawn-in-the-row-between-niger-and-france\/07\/12\/2024\/","title":{"rendered":"How a uranium mine became a pawn in the row between Niger and France"},"content":{"rendered":"

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In the latest sign of a dramatic deterioration in relations, Niger’s military rulers appear increasingly determined to drive France out of any significant sector in their economy – and particularly uranium mining.<\/p>\n

This week the French state nuclear company Orano announced that the junta – which deposed France’s ally, President Mohamed Bazoum, in a coup in July 2023 – had taken operational control of its local mining firm, Soma\u00efr.<\/p>\n

The company’s efforts to resume exports have for months been blocked by the regime and it is being pushed into financial crisis.<\/p>\n

And the impact could be felt more widely – although Niger accounts for less than 5% of the uranium produced globally, in 2022 it accounted for a quarter of the supply to nuclear power plants across Europe.<\/p>\n

So the timing could hardly be more awkward, as Western countries struggle to meet the challenge of climate change and cut their carbon emissions from electricity generation.<\/p>\n

For French President Emmanuel Macron, already wrestling with political crisis at home, the potential departure of Orano from Niger is certainly awkward in image terms.<\/p>\n

For it coincides with bruising news from other long-standing African partners – Chad has suddenly announced the ending of a defence agreement with Paris, while Senegal has confirmed its insistence on the eventual closure of the French military base in Dakar.<\/p>\n

But in any case, the crisis facing Orano in Niger represents a significant practical challenge for French energy supply.<\/p>\n

With 18 nuclear plants, totalling 56 reactors, which generate almost 65% of its electricity, France has been ahead of the game in containing carbon emissions from the power sector.<\/p>\n

But the country’s own limited production of uranium ended more than 20 years ago.<\/p>\n

So, over the past decade or so, it has imported almost 90,000 tonnes – a fifth of which has come from Niger. Only Kazakhstan – which accounts for 45% of global output – was a more important source of supply.<\/p>\n

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