Australian error reveals China uranium export plan

Australia plans to increase uranium sales to China provided it is not used in Beijing’s expanding weapons programme, documents mistakenly made public by Australia’s foreign minister showed on Thursday.

Foreign Minister Stephen Smith tabled in parliament a confidential list of treaty negotiations with other countries, revealing details of negotiations between Australia and China about lifting exports of uranium from BHP Billiton’s Olympic Dam mine in South Australia.
The treaty document said Australian diplomats attended talks in Beijing in January on BHP Billiton’s proposal to send uranium-infused copper concentrate to China from Olympic Dam.

BHP is currently undertaking a two-year feasibility study into the expansion of Olympic Dam, which is the world’s largest uranium deposit, fourth largest remaining copper deposit and fifth largest gold deposit.

Expansion, which requires government approval, would transform the underground facility into one of the world’s biggest open pit mines, with output rising six-fold.

Russia, China and India are all anxious to buy Australian uranium to develop civilian nuclear energy. Australia has 40 percent of the world’s recoverable uranium.

Reuters