Finland to become EU’s sole uranium producer

The Finnish government has granted a uranium recovery and refinery permit to Terrafame, making the country the EU’s only uranium producer.
The company’s main activities are related to nickel and zinc mining. Uranium is a by-product of the metal mining process. Terrafame, a 70% state-owned company, plans to refine the uranium into yellowcake, which is used as a fuel for nuclear power plants.
The aim is to export yellowcake to North America or other countries in Europe, for which the company needed an approval from the government, as well as from Euratom. It got the permission to produce up to 250 tonnes of uranium annually.
As the decision is subject to appeal at the Supreme Administrative Court of Finland, it could take up to two years until the approval enters into force.
The environmental NGO, the Finnish Association for Nature Conservation is one of the groups that are expected to appeal against the decision, as it says the permit violates the Nuclear Energy Act.