Advanced nuclear energy supply chains

The document identifies critical gaps in the U.S. nuclear supply chain, particularly regarding HALEU fuel, nuclear-grade graphite, and ultra-large forgings, noting a heavy reliance on Russia and China for these essential materials and services.

• The United States faces significant dependencies on foreign sources for uranium mining and milling; in 2023, domestic material accounted for only 5% of total deliveries, while Canada (27%), Australia (22%), Kazakhstan (22%), Russia (12%), and Uzbekistan (10%) were the primary sources.
• The U.S. lacks commercial-scale infrastructure for high-assay low enriched uranium (HALEU) enrichment and deconversion, with Russia previously being one of only two countries, alongside China, possessing the commercial infrastructure to enrich uranium up to 19.75% U 235.
• Critical supporting materials for advanced reactors are dominated by foreign providers: enriched Lithium-7 is almost exclusively sourced from China and Russia, and nuclear-grade graphite production is dominated by China, which already operates graphite-moderated reactors.
• The U.S. has no domestic capacity for ultra-large forgings and relies on suppliers in Europe, Japan, and South Korea for reactor pressure vessels and other heavy manufacturing components.

APA

Firth, S. (2025). Advanced nuclear energy supply chains. Clean Air Task Force. https://www.catf.us/2025/10/advanced-nuclear-energy-supply-chains/

Chicago

Firth, Sammie. Advanced nuclear energy supply chains. Clean Air Task Force, 2025. https://www.catf.us/2025/10/advanced-nuclear-energy-supply-chains/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Firth |first1=Sammie |title=Advanced nuclear energy supply chains |publisher=Clean Air Task Force |date=10 October 2025 |url=https://www.catf.us/2025/10/advanced-nuclear-energy-supply-chains/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{firth2025advanced, author = {Firth, Sammie}, title = {{Advanced nuclear energy supply chains}}, institution = {Clean Air Task Force}, year = {2025}, month = oct, url = {https://www.catf.us/2025/10/advanced-nuclear-energy-supply-chains/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }