Russian Sanctions Pose Risks to U.S. Nuclear Power Industry (2)

As economic sanctions pile up on Russia, there’s growing concern that export restrictions on the world’s top supplier of nuclear fuel has the potential to disrupt the U.S. power industry.

Russia produces about 35% of the world’s enriched uranium for reactors, about twice as much as the No. 2 provider, and supplies about 20% of the U.S. industry, according to UxC LLC, a nuclear industry researcher.

“If enrichment is curtailed, or supply from Russia is curtailed, it will have an immediate impact on the market,” Jonathan Hinze, president of UxC. “Because the West and countries like Japan, Korea, Taiwan and others don’t have ...