Uranium: Extraction
How acid pumped underground dissolves Kazakh uranium
What this tab covers How it is mined, drilled or grown, and processed into a tradeable form: the main methods compared, their unit economics, by-products, and the companies that do this work globally and in India.Uranium occurs in several deposit types: very high-grade unconformity deposits in Canada's Athabasca Basin, sandstone deposits in Kazakhstan, Namibian granite-hosted ores and Australia's Olympic Dam breccia. Kazakhstan relies on in-situ leaching. Acid solution is pumped through permeable sandstone and the uranium-bearing liquid is pumped back out, with little surface disturbance. Conventional mines crush ore and leach it in a mill. Both routes yield yellowcake, U3O8. Roughly 15% of supply is a by-product, for example of copper at Olympic Dam. Grades vary hugely: Congo's Shinkolobwe ore once ran near 70% (Conway).
Uranium is mined in three main ways. In situ leaching (ISL, also called ISR) pumps acidic or alkaline solution through permeable sandstone and recovers dissolved uranium at the surface, without moving rock; Kazakhstan's output is almost all ISL. Conventional underground and open-pit mines dig ore and mill it, from very high-grade Canadian deposits in the Athabasca Basin to large low-grade pits in Namibia. A small share comes as a by-product of copper, gold or phosphate, mainly at Olympic Dam in Australia. All routes end in U3O8 concentrate, which is sold mostly under long-term contracts to utilities.
Methods compared
| Method | Share of supply | Typical scale | Recovery / efficiency | By-products | Unit cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| In situ leaching (ISL/ISR) | 55% of world mine output (2024) | Kazakh wellfields such as Karatau (3,299 tU) and Inkai sites 1-3 (2,992 tU) in 2024; Kazakhstan produced 23,270 tU | n/a | None of note | n/a |
| Conventional underground and open-pit mining with milling | 40% of world mine output (2024) | McArthur River/Key Lake 7,808 tU, Cigar Lake 6,501 tU, Husab 4,437 tU, Rossing 2,205 tU (2024) | n/a | None of note | n/a |
| By-product recovery (mainly Olympic Dam copper mine) | 5% of world mine output (2024) | Olympic Dam 2,693 tU in 2024 (WNA); BHP reported 3,154 t of payable uranium for FY2025 | n/a | Uranium is itself the by-product of copper | n/a |
How each method works
In situ leaching (ISL/ISR)Wells are drilled into a uranium-bearing sandstone aquifer bounded by impermeable layers. Leach solution, usually dilute sulphuric acid in Kazakhstan, is injected and pumped back up carrying dissolved uranium, which is captured on ion-exchange resin, stripped, precipitated and dried to U3O8.
Low surface disturbance and low capital per tonne, but works only in suitable aquifers and depends on sulphuric acid supply, a recurring constraint in Kazakhstan.
World Nuclear Association, World Uranium Mining Production (2024) Conventional underground and open-pit mining with millingOre is mined and milled: crushed, leached in tanks, and the uranium recovered by solvent extraction or ion exchange before precipitation. Canada's Cigar Lake uses ground freezing and remote jet boring to mine ore of exceptional grade; Namibia's Husab and Rossing move large tonnages of low-grade ore.
High-grade Canadian mines are among the lowest-cost and largest sources, but are technically demanding; low-grade pits are price-sensitive and idle in downturns.
World Nuclear Association (2024) By-product recovery (mainly Olympic Dam copper mine)Uranium is recovered from the copper-gold-silver ore at Olympic Dam during processing and sold as uranium oxide concentrate. Output follows copper production, not the uranium price.
Very low incremental cost, but volumes cannot respond to uranium prices.
WNA (2024); BHP Operational Review FY2025 Unit economics are indicative ranges from the sources named; costs vary widely by deposit, region and year.By-product supply
About 5% of mined uranium in 2024 came as a by-product, almost all from BHP's Olympic Dam copper mine in Australia (WNA). Its output tracks copper mining plans, so this slice of supply does not respond to uranium prices. A further part of demand has historically been met from secondary supplies such as inventories and down-blended weapons material: mine output met 76% of demand in 2022, 83% in 2023 and 90% in 2024 (WNA).
Share produced as a by-product
About 15% of primary supply comes as a by-product (Nassar, Graedel & Harper 2015, approximate).Who does it: global
| Company | Country | Activity | Volume | Year | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kazatomprom | Kazakhstan | ISL mining (state-controlled) | 13,600 tU attributable (25,800 tU on 100% basis) | 2025 | Freedom Broker analysis of Kazatomprom 2025 results |
| Cameco | Canada | mining (McArthur River, Cigar Lake), conversion, fuel services | 10,193 tU | 2024 | World Nuclear Association |
| Orano | France | mining (Canada, Kazakhstan, Niger), conversion, enrichment, reprocessing | 6,815 tU | 2024 | World Nuclear Association |
| Uranium One (Rosatom) | Russia | ISL mining in Kazakhstan | 5,829 tU | 2024 | World Nuclear Association |
| CGN (China General Nuclear) | China | mining (Husab, Kazakhstan JVs) and reactor operation | 5,761 tU | 2024 | World Nuclear Association |
| Navoi Mining (Navoiyuran) | Uzbekistan | ISL mining (state-owned) | 4,000 tU (estimate) | 2024 | World Nuclear Association |
| CNNC | China | mining (Rossing, China), full fuel cycle and reactors | 3,286 tU | 2024 | World Nuclear Association |
| BHP | Australia | by-product at Olympic Dam | 2,693 tU | 2024 | World Nuclear Association |
Who does it: India
| Company | Country | Activity | Volume | Year | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Uranium Corporation of India (UCIL) | India | mining and milling (Jaduguda and other Jharkhand mines, Tummalapalle in Andhra Pradesh); Department of Atomic Energy | 500 tU (WNA estimate for all of India; UCIL does not publish output) | 2024 | World Nuclear Association, World Uranium Mining Production |
| NPCIL (Nuclear Power Corporation of India) | India | reactor operator (PHWRs and imported light-water units); fuel buyer | 54.7 TWh nuclear generation (India total) | 2024 | Energy Institute Statistical Review of World Energy 2025 |
India's uranium output is not published; WNA estimates about 500 tU in 2024, well below its reactors' needs. Imported uranium fuels reactors under IAEA safeguards, and India took 16% of world uranium ore and concentrate imports by value in 2023 (UN Comtrade, HS 261210). Uranium is not on India's 2023 critical minerals list, as atomic minerals are handled by the Department of Atomic Energy.