Given the deep sell-off in uranium stocks, I thought we’d do a special three-part series exploring the potential opportunity in this market.
Is this the time for value-focused investors to take up a position, or is uranium set to capitulate into a long-term bear market, like lithium?
We’ll start our exploration by digging into energy-starved Europe, a region begging for a nuclear solution. And where the seed for much higher uranium demand could emerge.
You see, the European Union has been shaken. Geopolitically and economically.
Tensions with major gas exporter Russia have stirred the region’s long-term energy security.
Higher energy prices and falling productivity have wounded the once-mighty German manufacturing machine.
With the EU’s ageing demographic, the region is poorly equipped to tackle problems like energy scarcity, sticky inflation, and declining productivity.
But adding to its woes, the region’s most powerful ally—the US — is preparing to impose further tariffs while perhaps abandoning its commitment to NATO.
Yet, there’s an economic island of sorts… Within the heart of the European Union. An energy oasis that offers the playbook to prevent Europe’s future economic rot.
This well-known country has spent decades preparing for this occasion by building a self-sufficient ENERGY FORTRESS.
Remarkably, very few countries have taken notice or given this country the credit it deserves… So, what’s the country I’m talking about?
‘Vive la France!’
The French have (mostly) sidestepped Europe’s economic pain, largely thanks to their ‘energy moat.’
In fact, few realise that France is now an energy-independent nation.
Unlike most countries in the West, France has placed energy at the heart of its long-term planning.
And with its ENERGY FORTRESS established, France is now an exporter of electricity!
Making billions selling excess capacity to its energy-starved neighbours all across Europe.
So, how does one of the world’s largest economies, which has barely any natural resources like oil, coal, or gas, generate more electricity than it needs?
The country’s patriarchal hero, Charles de Gaulle, planted the seed long ago. He laid the groundwork for France’s future energy security.
De Gaulle was a statesman who led the Free French forces against Nazi Germany in World War II. He later rewrote the constitution of France and went on to become the country’s President.
De Gaulle was a patriotic Frenchman who lived by the words: ‘Vive la France!’
Long live France.
No doubt, he’s experiences against Nazi Germany, which rampaged effortlessly through the country’s ill-prepared armed forces, led to that cause. A cause that would shape France into becoming a self-sufficient energy powerhouse.
Nuclear: How France Made It Work
De Gaulle strongly advocated for nuclear… In all of its forms.
From the deadly… with the development of nuclear weapons to build the country’s defence capability.
And nuclear power, which De Gaulle correctly predicted would fuel the country’s economic advantage.
Yet France was different from other ‘nuclear adopters.’
Unlike the US, Japan, or Germany, the French held an unwavering commitment to this vital energy source. Since installing its first reactor in 1964, the country hasn’t looked back!
Today, France generates almost 80% of its electrical needs from nuclear power, the highest share of any country in the world.
France offers a playbook for the effective deployment of nuclear energy and how it can strengthen resource-poor economies, even in an age of commodity scarcity.
While most nuclear critics draw on examples from Germany, Japan, and the US, pointing at their abandoned nuclear ambitions… Few have recognised the winning formula laid out by the French.
So, how is ‘nuclear France’ performing relative to its energy-starved peers?
One metric we can use is foreign direct investment, or “FDI,” the total investment flowing into a country.
In 2024, the UN Trade and Development branch found that FDI fell a staggering 45% across Europe and as much as 60% in energy-hit Germany!
On all accounts, France fared much better in Europe’s economic meltdown… recording a modest lift in FDI of 1.9%.
According to official records, France also ranks the highest among all European nations in terms of its ‘investment attractiveness’—a title it has held for five consecutive years.
It’s also the most desirable country for industrial investment in Europe. No wonder!
But hardly anyone seems to be linking its success to the country’s reliance on nuclear power.
Stay tuned for ‘Part II’ as we unpack specific opportunities in the uranium market.
Until next time.
Regards,
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James Cooper,
Editor, Mining: Phase One and Diggers and Drillers
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