Bipartisan Bill to Ban Russian Uranium Imports Introduced in Senate
For the second year in a row, members of Congress are arguing that they should vote to ban the import of Russian uranium (see 2203280068), but the Senate reintroduction of the bill is now bipartisan, with powerful swing vote Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., on board.
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House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., is the lead sponsor of the bill in the House, and she said during a February hearing of her committee on energy and supply chains, "I am leading on a bill that aims to eliminate our reliance -- which is currently about 24% -- on Russian nuclear fuels for our nuclear reactors. Expanding our leadership in developing and expanding nuclear energy is going to be one of our top priorities this Congress and addressing our reliance on Russian fuel is just the beginning."
Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., lead sponsor in the Senate, said, "Wyoming has the resources we need to boost production at home. The first step is permanently removing all Russian energy, including uranium, from the American marketplace. By banning Russian uranium imports we can further defund Russia’s war machine, help revive American uranium production, and increase our national security."
If passed, the administration would be able to offer a waiver to domestic nuclear power plants if there is no viable domestic alternative. The bill text seems to foresee such an issue, because it offers quotas for the amount that may be imported from Russia -- 578,877 kg in 2023, declining to 459,083 kg in 2027.