Kazakh uranium industry unaffected by unrest

The world's largest uranium producer, Kazatomprom, remains unaffected by the ongoing turmoil in the Central Asian state of Kazakhstan, Reuters reported the Kazakh producer as saying.

"Uranium mining is going according to plan, there have been no stoppages," a Kazatomprom spokesperson said. "The company is fulfilling its export contracts."

Uranium prices have spiked to $45.5 per pound, the highest since November 30, as protests and security crackdowns spread across the country.

The widespread protests initially started in the oil-rich west of the country in response to rising prices of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), which many Kazakhs use to power their cars. The protests have now grown to include critics of Kazakhstan's long autocratic rule.

Kazakhstan has a history of social upheaval. Nursultan Nazarbayev ruled a former Soviet state, Kazakhstan, from 1991 until 2019. Nazarbayev ally Kassym-Jomart Toqayev was elected president in a vote condemned by observers as unfree in 2019. Nazarbayev remained in government in a national security position.