<div id="readability-page-1"><div>To support current commercial nuclear operations, plus 300 GW of new nuclear capacity for a total of roughly 400 GW by 2050, all fueled domestically, the country would need to invest between $105 billion and $170 billion across the entire nuclear fuel cycle.Is it still called a bottleneck if the entire industry is the problem?<img width="500" height="428" src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://files.zhedge.com/cdn-cgi/image/width=1920,quality=75,format=auto/https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-12%20at%2012.38.56%E2%80%AFPM.png?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg" original-src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://files.zhedge.com/cdn-cgi/image/width=1920,quality=75,format=auto/https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-12%20at%2012.38.56%E2%80%AFPM.png"/>The consulting firm McKinsey &amp; Company used the most aspirational scenario from the Trump administration’s May 2025 executive orders as its benchmark for their recent report. That means rebuilding capacity from mining and milling through conversion, enrichment, fabrication, and even reprocessing.It's looking more and more like the $2.7 billion award from the DOE for domestic enrichment barely scratches the surface:<ul><li>$15-20 billion for mining and milling</li><li>$30-45 billion for conversion</li><li>$30-40 billion for enrichment</li><li>$10-20 billion for fabrication</li><li>$20-45 billion for reprocessing</li></ul>These figures assume a mix of new and existing reactors, including Gen IV designs that will demand high-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU).We have documented the vulnerabilities for months. Today the United States imports about 99 percent of the raw uranium ore needed for its commercial fleet…<img width="500" height="340" src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://files.zhedge.com/cdn-cgi/image/width=1920,quality=75,format=auto/https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-12%20at%2012.39.55%E2%80%AFPM.png?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg" original-src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://files.zhedge.com/cdn-cgi/image/width=1920,quality=75,format=auto/https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-12%20at%2012.39.55%E2%80%AFPM.png"/>With milling capacity effectively nonexistent and conversion limited to a single operating facility…<img width="500" height="254" src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://files.zhedge.com/cdn-cgi/image/width=1920,quality=75,format=auto/https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-12%20at%2012.41.12%E2%80%AFPM.png?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg" original-src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://files.zhedge.com/cdn-cgi/image/width=1920,quality=75,format=auto/https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-12%20at%2012.41.12%E2%80%AFPM.png"/>And enrichment capacity covers only about one-third of domestic needs…<img width="500" height="418" src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://files.zhedge.com/cdn-cgi/image/width=1920,quality=75,format=auto/https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-12%20at%2012.39.31%E2%80%AFPM.png?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg" original-src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://files.zhedge.com/cdn-cgi/image/width=1920,quality=75,format=auto/https://assets.zerohedge.com/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-05-12%20at%2012.39.31%E2%80%AFPM.png"/>The gaps leave utilities exposed to geopolitical risks and price volatility, a point we highlighted when uranium spot prices pulled back earlier this year even as long-term supply deficits widened…<blockquote>Uranium: the next gold pic.twitter.com/2SSjvRkdSg— zerohedge (@zerohedge) December 12, 2025</blockquote>Progress is accelerating, however. We reported on the DOE’s Nuclear Fuel Cycle Defense Production Act Consortium, which has met repeatedly to map out a seven-year “Nuclear Dominance – 3 by 33” plan covering every link from mining to reprocessing.DOE has also awarded nearly $3 billion for enrichment projects, including $900 million each to Centrus Energy and General Matter, while the Export-Import Bank has backed up to $4.2 billion in additional financing. Centrus recently committed $560 million to scale centrifuge manufacturing in Oak Ridge, and we covered its joint-venture discussions with Oklo for HALEU deconversion services.The private sector is also making progress on their own, not wanting to wait for the government to sort itself out and attempt to take market share while it's up for grabs.Uranium Energy Corp is expanding ISR mining and advancing conversion licensing. New entrants like FluxPoint Energy and LIS Technologies are targeting conversion and next-generation laser enrichment facilities, aiming for commercial operations before 2030.We also noted Goldman Sachs’ updates showing persistent supply-demand mismatches that continue to support higher uranium prices over the coming decades.McKinsey stresses that capital alone will not suffice. Permitting reform, infrastructure build-out, workforce development, and advanced technologies will prove critical to compressing the long lead times inherent in fuel-cycle projects. The firm acknowledges 100% domestic sourcing will prove challenging, yet the analysis underscores that options exist if stakeholders maintain focus. </div></div>

URAN

RCTR

铀矿核能 ETF - VanEck Vectors

铀矿 ETF - GlobalX

北岸全球铀矿开采 ETF - Exchange Traded Concepts

美国需要投资 1050 亿至 1700 亿美元，以确保完整的国内核燃料供应链，支持当前的运营和到 2050 年新增 300 吉瓦的产能。麦肯锡的报告强调了重建采矿、磨矿、转化、浓缩、制造和再处理能力的必要性。目前，美国 99% 的铀依赖进口，这使得公用事业面临地缘政治风险。尽管已经为浓缩项目和私营部门倡议拨款近 30 亿美元，但麦肯锡强调，仅靠资本是不够的；改革和劳动力发展对于成功至关重要

Up To $170 Billion Needed To Secure Full Domestic Nuclear Fuel Supply Chain

ZeroHedge

Themes Uranium & Nuclear ETF

First Trust Bloomberg Nuclear Power ETF

Centrus Energy

Oklo

Uranium Energy

高盛

GS Hldg R

确保完整的国内核燃料供应链可能需要高达 1700 亿美元的资金