According to the analysts of the First Credit Bureau, Kazakhstan has significantly increased the export of natural processed uranium to Russia. As noted in the PCB, referring to the data of the Bureau of National Statistics, in January 2023, almost 1.8 thousand tons were sold for a total of $228.6 million.
For comparison: in the first 5 months of 2022, exports to Russia amounted to about 1.9 thousand tons for $216.5 million. Thus, the sales level for the first month of 2023 is commensurate with sales in January-May of the previous year.
The second point that attracts attention is that Russia is the main buyer of the group “Products of inorganic chemistry, inorganic or organic compounds of precious metals, rare earth metals, radioactive elements or isotopes.” Uranium belongs to it.
In general, Kazakhstan’s export of all nuclear products in January amounted to $299.8 million, of which 83% was provided by Russia (and 76% – specifically by uranium). At the same time, in December, for example, exports of this enlarged group to all countries of the world amounted to $591.5 million. Of these, only 32% (or $186.8 million) accounted for the Russian Federation.