US, Russia agree to boost uranium imports
WASHINGTON (AFP) — The United States and Russia signed a deal that will boost Russian uranium imports to supply the US nuclear industry, the Commerce Department said Friday.
"This agreement will encourage bilateral trade in Russian uranium products for peaceful purposes," Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez said in a statement.
"It will also help to ensure that US utilities have an adequate source of enriched uranium for US utility consumers," he added.
The agreement, signed at Dulles International Airport near Washington by Gutierrez and Russian Federal Atomic Energy Agency Director Sergey Kiriyenko, allows for sale of Russian uranium products directly to US utilities under a quota for Russian exports from 2014 to 2020.
The Russian Federation will also be able to export smaller quantities of uranium products from 2011 through 2013.
A Commerce official told AFP the agreement, which has been under negotiation for two years, is an amendment of a 1992 accord in an antidumping case defending the US domestic uranium sector.
In that accord, Commerce suspended an antidumping duty investigation involving uranium from Russia. In exchange, the Russian government pledged to limit the volume of direct or indirect exports to the US to prevent undercutting the price levels of the US uranium.
The new agreement permits Russia to supply 20 percent of US reactor fuel until 2020 and to supply the fuel for new reactors quota-free.
