<P> Historically, uranium has been mined in countries willing to export, including Australia and Canada . However, countries now responsible for more than 30% of the world's uranium production include Kazakhstan, Namibia, Niger, and Uzbekistan . </P> <P> Uranium from mining is used almost entirely as fuel for nuclear power plants . Following the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster, the global uranium market remains depressed, with the uranium price falling more than 50%, declining share values, and reduced profitability of uranium producers since March 2011 . As a result, uranium companies worldwide are reducing capacity, closing operations and deferring new production . </P> <P> Before uranium is ready for use as nuclear fuel in reactors, it must undergo a number of intermediary processing steps which are identified as the front end of the nuclear fuel cycle: mining it (either underground or in open pit mines), milling it into yellowcake, enriching it and finally fuel fabrication to produce fuel assemblies or bundles . This technologically complicated and challenging process is simple in comparison to the complexity of the market that has evolved to provide these three services . </P> <P> The world's top uranium producers in 2012 with 64% of production were Kazakhstan (36.5% of world production), Canada (15.4%) and Australia (12.0%). Other major producers included Niger, Namibia and Russia Purification facilities are almost always located at the mining sites . The facilities for enrichment, on the other hand, are found in those countries that produce significant amounts of electricity from nuclear power . Large commercial enrichment plants are in operation in France, Germany, Netherlands, UK, United States, and Russia, with smaller plants elsewhere . These nations form the core of the uranium market and influence considerable control over all buyers . The uranium market is a classic seller's market . The uranium cartel, as it became known, was the alliance of the major uranium producing nations . Representatives of these five countries met in Paris, France in February, 1972 to discuss the "orderly marketing" of uranium . Although sounding innocuous, they had, amongst themselves, a monopoly in the uranium market and were deciding to exercise it . </P>

How much is a ton of uranium worth