{"id":1425111,"date":"2022-04-08T08:01:26","date_gmt":"2022-04-08T12:01:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1425111"},"modified":"2022-04-08T08:01:32","modified_gmt":"2022-04-08T12:01:32","slug":"without-new-uranium-mines-u-s-runs-risk-of-european-style-reliance-on-russian-energy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/without-new-uranium-mines-u-s-runs-risk-of-european-style-reliance-on-russian-energy\/","title":{"rendered":"Without New Uranium Mines, U.S. Runs Risk Of European-Style Reliance On Russian Energy"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">26<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fwithout-new-uranium-mines-u-s-runs-risk-of-european-style-reliance-on-russian-energy%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1425111&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><div><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/34718926936_adb4adf2fb_k-e1649376339177.jpg\" class=\"ff-og-image-inserted\" alt=\"image\" \/><\/div>\n<p>Europe\u2019s fragile energy markets vulnerable to Russian interruption may soon be uncomfortably similar to the American power grid if policymakers aren\u2019t careful about pushing a low-carbon future. <\/p>\n<p>With a third of European oil and more than 40 percent of its gas provided by Russia, President Vladimir Putin has threatened to shut off the lights across Europe in an effort to counter western sanctions imposed in retaliation for the Kremlin invasion of Ukraine, demanding payment in Rubles instead of Euros.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf such payments are not made, we will consider this a default on the part of buyers \u2014 with all the ensuing consequences,\u201d Putin warned. \u201cNobody sells us anything for free, and we are not going to do charity, either. That is, existing contracts will be stopped.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The deadline came and went, with Russian gas still flowing after European leaders called Putin\u2019s bluff. The cold reality of European reliance on Russian energy supplies, however, has continued to handicap the diplomatic options available to western leaders while global markets face turbulence from sanctions on Moscow\u2019s oil. Putin also trimmed exports to keep\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bruegel.org\/2021\/12\/how-serious-is-europes-natural-gas-storage-shortfall\/\">European reserves<\/a>\u00a0\u201cbelow the minimum volume\u201d for the first time in the half a decade preceding his invasion.<\/p>\n<p>A ban on Russian oil, a financial gold mine for the Kremlin\u2019s war machine providing more than <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eia.gov\/tools\/faqs\/faq.php?id=709&#038;t=6\">10 percent<\/a> of global supply, was initially absent in the first sanctions package handed down by the United States and its allies following the assault on Ukraine. President Joe Biden <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2022\/03\/08\/biden-plans-to-ban-russian-oil-imports-but-buy-it-from-moscows-allies-instead-of-producing-it-at-home\/\">unilaterally banned<\/a> Russian oil imports for two weeks after the full-fledged offensive with European leaders slow to follow. It wasn\u2019t until this week the EU <a href=\"https:\/\/abcnews.go.com\/Politics\/wireStory\/europe-set-ban-russian-coal-struggles-oil-gas-83930012\">proposed <\/a>a ban on Russian coal while considering new restrictions on oil and gas. In the meantime, Europe is scrambling to replace its dependence on Russian energy supplies, with Germany even <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2022\/03\/30\/business\/germany-russia-gas-warning\/index.html\">warning<\/a> citizens to prepare for rations as it enters the official first stage of crisis management. <\/p>\n<p>The United States was able to bar Russian oil imports with relative ease since only 3 percent of imported crude came from Moscow\u2019s reserves. That\u2019s still no small amount, and Americans are now coping with the highest gas prices on record as the Biden administration refuses to unleash domestic production to offset the interruption. If America truly embraces the long-term path of a sustainably fossil-free future, however, it <a href=\"https:\/\/michaelshellenberger.substack.com\/p\/finally-they-admit-renewables-dont?s=r\">has to go nuclear<\/a>. Doing so without a re-assessment of the nation\u2019s uranium suppliers could make the United States just as dependent on Russian fuel as Europe is today.<\/p>\n<p>Nuclear power from 93 reactors currently generates 20 percent of the U.S. electric grid and is the source of 55 percent of carbon-free energy, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nei.org\/home\">according<\/a> to the Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI). While the 2022 annual <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eia.gov\/outlooks\/aeo\/pdf\/AEO2022_ChartLibrary_Electricity.pdf\">outlook<\/a> from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) keeps the share of nuclear-generated electricity on the power grid consistent over the next 30 years, Daniel Turner, the founder and executive director of the non-profit Power the Future, faults the government\u2019s forecast for being too optimistic about the ability of renewables to experience exponential growth as predicted. <\/p>\n<p>The numbers, Turner told The Federalist, rely too much on capacity, explaining it\u2019s \u201ca false statistic because if the wind does not blow and the sun does not shine, it doesn\u2019t matter how much capacity\u201d exists. Europe\u2019s recent <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bloomberg.com\/news\/articles\/2021-09-18\/europe-faces-bleak-winter-energy-crisis-years-in-the-making\">low-wind winter <\/a>while Russia weaponized its resource relationship gave the continent a rude awakening.  <\/p>\n<p>\u201cAssuming full capacity is met, those numbers are great,\u201d Turner said. Yet full capacity would also mean <a href=\"https:\/\/michaelshellenberger.substack.com\/p\/finally-they-admit-renewables-are?s=r\">devastating impacts <\/a>to wildlife given the sheer amount of land required to substitute conventional energy with wind and solar. Just this week, a wind power company was <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2022\/04\/07\/wind-power-company-fined-millions-after-it-pleads-guilty-to-killing-150-eagles\/\">fined millions<\/a> after executives pled guilty to killing at least 150 protected eagles by turbines. <\/p>\n<p>Nuclear power, therefore, has become an attractive emissions-free alternative to wind and solar, drawing bipartisan support to meet the nation\u2019s 21st-century energy needs without producing more carbon. Despite the <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/SecGranholm\/status\/1486134540766564352?s=20&#038;t=Q9hz9ERNNAXymEEmXUjLmw\">endorsement<\/a> of Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm, the United States is a long way off from ramping up nuclear power without significant vulnerabilities in the supply chain. <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.eia.gov\/todayinenergy\/detail.php?id=44416\">According<\/a> to the Energy Information Administration (EIA), U.S. uranium production fell to an all-time low in 2019 while sourcing <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eia.gov\/energyexplained\/nuclear\/where-our-uranium-comes-from.php\">46 percent<\/a> of the mineral from Russia and Russian allies in 2020. Uranium was also <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eenews.net\/articles\/usgs-proposal-yanks-uranium-from-critical-minerals-list\/\">dropped<\/a> as a critical mineral by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) last year, a decision western senators have <a href=\"https:\/\/www.energy.senate.gov\/2022\/2\/energy-committee-leaders-to-secretary-haaland-helium-uranium-are-critical-minerals\">taken issue<\/a> with as the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources holds a series of hearings to examine the need for domestically-sourced resources. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m worried about our domestic reliance on imported uranium, specifically and especially Russian-imported uranium,\u201d Utah Republican Sen. Mike Lee said as he began his questioning to an expert panel at a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.energy.senate.gov\/hearings\/2022\/3\/full-committee-hearing-on-domestic-critical-mineral-supply-chain#:~:text=The%20hearing%20will%20be%20held,processing%2C%20refining%2C%20and%20reprocessing.\">March hearing<\/a>. \u201cI think this poses a significant strategic risk to the United States. I\u2019m also worried that the recent decision by the Biden administration to remove uranium from its critical minerals list is something that could have very real, harmful, lasting consequences.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Scott Melby, the president of the Uranium Producers of America, said there was ample reason for concern.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019ve become a little lackadaisical about the supply of uranium,\u201d Melby said, explaining the situation was borne out of commercial interest despite the U.S. being home to \u201cover a billion of known and likely resources\u201d which could be mined with \u201cthe highest environmental standards\u201d of anywhere in the world.<\/p>\n<p>As the Biden administration maintains an aggressive push for renewable energy, the White House has remained reluctant to draw minerals required for this from American lands, instead relying on trade with overseas adversaries and scaring off investment from U.S. projects. While Russia sources American uranium, China holds the <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2021\/08\/07\/bidens-electric-vehicle-plan-without-mining-expansion-is-a-big-win-for-beijing\/\">monopoly<\/a> on \u201crare earth\u201d minerals required for electric cars. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019ve got to pay attention to our uranium industry,\u201d Melby told lawmakers. \u201cCountries like Russia, China are playing the long game. They\u2019re acquiring resources all over the world.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>For the time being, Turner told The Federalist, \u201cbuying our uranium from Russia is no different from having 3 percent of our oil from Russia.\u201d<\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\" \/>\n<p>\n  Tristan Justice is the western correspondent for The Federalist. He has also written for The Washington Examiner and The Daily Signal. His work has also been featured in Real Clear Politics and Fox News. Tristan graduated from George Washington University where he majored in political science and minored in journalism. Follow him on Twitter at @JusticeTristan or contact him at Tristan@thefederalist.com.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Europe\u2019s fragile energy markets vulnerable to Russian interruption may soon be uncomfortably similar to the American power grid if policymakers aren\u2019t careful about pushing a low-carbon future. With a<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":494,"featured_media":2315279,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1425111","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1425111","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/494"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1425111"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1425111\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2315279"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1425111"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1425111"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1425111"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}