By : Franyi Sarmiento, Ph.D., Inspenet, June 6, 2022
Chinese researchers have discovered huge uranium deposits at depths previously considered impossible, which could significantly impact the Asian country’s position in the world market, reports the South China Morning Post.
Large deposits of industrial-grade uranium were found by geologists thanks to the latest technology, which increased the depth of exploration to 3,000 meters, six times that of most uranium mines in China.
While the demand for uranium in the country grows, due to the construction of new reactors every year, as well as the production of nuclear weapons, most of the country’s mines are small-scale and of low quality, where more than 70% of the radioactive element arrives from other countries. However, this discovery multiplies by 10 the country’s total reserves, placing it at the level of Australia, one of the largest exploiters globally.
According to Li Ziying, director of the Beijing Research Institute of Uranium Geology, the discovery refutes traditional theories about the formation of uranium deposits, according to which the element is concentrated only in shallow and geophysically stable zones. In addition, some of the largest uranium deposits discovered in recent years in China are in regions that have experienced strong tectonic movements and at depths of more than 1,500 meters.
Also, according to a Beijing nuclear fuel researcher, the discovery will not immediately change the country’s reliance on imported uranium, but “in the long term, it is likely to have a profound impact on China’s position in the world market.”
Source Actualidad RT in Spanish: https://actualidad.rt.com/actualidad/431346-descubren-enormes-yacimientos-uranio-china
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