Russia and Argentina signed a Memorandum of Understanding concerning uranium exploration and mining that the South American country said it hoped would put it on a path towards “self-sufficiency in uranium.”
At a signing ceremony in Moscow, coinciding with a visit Argentina's President Mauricio Marci, the two parties also said that discussions were in the works concerning a Russian-designed nuclear power plant in Argentina, which currently derives about 10 percent of its electricity generation from three nuclear reactors.
The MOU was signed by Foreign Minister Jorge Faurie, the CEO of UrAmerica, a privately owned uranium exploration firm based on Buenos Aires, and the President and CEO of Uranium One, which is wholly owned by Russian nuclear power group Rosatom.
In a joint statement issued after the summit discussions, Russian President Vladmir Putin said, “Rosatom is proposing a nuclear power plant of Russian design in Argentina based on the latest and safest technological standards.”
Cooperation agreements for a nuclear power plant project were signed in 2015.
According to the World Nuclear Association, the exploration and mining MOU focuses on in situ mining techniques, considered a less-invasive style of mining that relies on injecting sandy areas with a solution that dissolves with uranium in the sand. The solution is then pumped to the surface to have the uranium extracted.
The Argentina Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the technique is “the most efficient method due to its low cost and minimal environmental impact.”
“The signing of the memorandum seeks to position Argentina as a global uranium producer in the region and to fully satisfy Argentine demand for this metal from now on – until UrAmerica starts its own production and our country gradually becomes self-sufficient in uranium,” the ministry said.
The MOU stipulates an original investment target of $250 million.