India, Uzbekistan seal long-term uranium supply deal during PM Modi visit
During bilateral talks in Tashkent, India and Uzbekistan announced a long-term arrangement for the supply of uranium to India
An MoU on cooperation in geology and mineral resources, covering critical minerals and uranium, was signed between India's Ministry of Mines and Uzbekistan's Ministry of Mining Industry and Geology
The uranium arrangement was announced alongside a broader upgrade of bilateral ties and an annual bilateral trade target of USD 5 billion by 2030
The deal is aimed at securing nuclear fuel supply as India expands its civil nuclear power capacity
The 2008 NSG Waiver and India's Civil Nuclear Trade Regime
India is not a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), which would normally bar it from importing uranium and nuclear technology from Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) member states. A one-time, India-specific waiver from the NSG removed this barrier, opening the door to commercial uranium imports for India's civilian reactor fleet.
Key Details
- The 45-member NSG granted India a "clean waiver" on 6 September 2008, exempting it from the NSG's Full-Scope Safeguards requirement that normally applies to non-NPT states
- The waiver followed the 2005 India-US civil nuclear framework and the 2006 US-India Civil Nuclear (123) Agreement, and required India to separate its civilian and military nuclear facilities under a Separation Plan and place civilian reactors under India-specific IAEA safeguards (2009 safeguards agreement)
- The waiver enabled India to sign civil nuclear/uranium supply arrangements with Kazakhstan (2009), Russia, France, Canada, Mongolia, Namibia, and Australia (2017 uranium sales agreement)
- Between 2008-09 and 2024-25, India imported roughly 18,800 tonnes of uranium (as ore concentrate and fuel pellets) for reactors operating under IAEA safeguards
The Uzbekistan uranium arrangement extends this post-2008 pattern of diversifying import sources for India's safeguarded civil reactors, adding a sixth major overseas uranium partner alongside Kazakhstan, Russia, Canada, Namibia, and Australia.
Institutional Framework for India's Nuclear Fuel Cycle
India's nuclear power sector is organised around a small set of statutory and departmental bodies that separately handle domestic mining, fuel fabrication, and reactor operation — a structure UPSC frequently tests by asking which body does what.
Key Details
- The Department of Atomic Energy (DAE), directly under the Prime Minister, is the apex nuclear authority in India, established in 1954
- Uranium Corporation of India Limited (UCIL), a DAE public sector unit, mines and mills domestic uranium ore, chiefly from the Singhbhum belt in Jharkhand (Jaduguda and associated mines)
- Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL), also a DAE PSU, designs, constructs, and operates India's nuclear power reactors
- Imported uranium supplements domestic ore because India's known reserves are modest relative to its expanding reactor fleet, making assured overseas supply agreements operationally necessary rather than merely diplomatic gestures
The Uzbekistan supply arrangement will feed into this DAE-NPCIL fuel-cycle chain, supplementing UCIL's domestic output to keep upcoming and existing pressurised heavy-water reactors (PHWRs) adequately fuelled.
Uzbekistan's Position in the Global Uranium Market
Understanding why Uzbekistan specifically matters requires placing it within the small group of countries that dominate world uranium production — a fact base UPSC prelims often draws on for "which country ranks where" questions.
Key Details
- Uzbekistan's state uranium enterprise, Navoiyuran, produced roughly 7,000 tonnes of natural uranium in 2025, making Uzbekistan one of the world's top five to six uranium producers
- Navoiyuran reported uranium reserves of approximately 96,600 tonnes (JORC-compliant, April 2026) and additional mineral resources of around 53,900 tonnes
- The top five uranium-producing countries — Kazakhstan, Canada, Australia, Namibia, and Uzbekistan — together account for over three-quarters of global uranium supply; Kazakhstan's Kazatomprom remains the single largest producer at roughly 21,000 tonnes annually
- Uzbekistan also holds commercially significant deposits of rare earth elements, lithium, tungsten, copper, gold, and other minerals, positioning it as a broader resource partner for India beyond uranium alone
Securing a long-term arrangement with one of the world's top-five uranium producers gives India a geographically diversified, non-Middle Eastern and non-Russian-adjacent fuel source, reducing dependence on any single supplier for an input critical to energy security.
- NSG India-specific waiver granted: 6 September 2008
- India's total uranium imports (2008-09 to 2024-25): approximately 18,800 tonnes
- India's current civil nuclear uranium suppliers: Kazakhstan, Russia, Canada, Namibia, Australia, and now Uzbekistan
- Domestic uranium mining is concentrated in the Singhbhum belt, Jharkhand (UCIL, under DAE)
- Uzbekistan's 2025 uranium output: approximately 7,000 tonnes; reserves approximately 96,600 tonnes (JORC, 2026)
- Top five global uranium producers (Kazakhstan, Canada, Australia, Namibia, Uzbekistan) supply over 75% of world uranium
- India-Uzbekistan annual bilateral trade target set: USD 5 billion by 2030 (from over USD 1 billion currently)