On July 12, the “Guoyou No. 1” demonstration project, located in Ordos City, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, successfully produced its first batch of uranium products. The “Guoyou No. 1” demonstration project is China’s largest natural uranium production base, featuring the highest construction standards and the most advanced technological level. The project broke ground on July 12, 2024, and within just one year, it has already begun producing commercial quantities of uranium—setting a new “speed record” for the construction of domestic natural uranium production facilities.

Natural uranium is an important strategic resource and energy mineral. Exploration, mining, and processing of uranium resources occupy the upstream segment of the nuclear fuel cycle and serve as a critical material foundation for the development of the nuclear industry. As the largest natural uranium production project in China’s nuclear geology and mining sector over the past 70 years, the successful first batch of uranium produced under this project marks the entry of China’s uranium resource development into a new stage characterized by green safety, intelligence, and high efficiency. Upon completion, the project will provide a solid resource guarantee for national energy security and the development of the nuclear industry, while also significantly enhancing the international competitiveness of China’s natural uranium industry.

“The ‘Guoyou No. 1’ demonstration project represents a major practical achievement of China’s third-generation uranium mining and metallurgical technology system. It has established modern uranium mine production elements centered on ‘environmental friendliness, remote monitoring and control, intelligent analysis, and high quality and efficiency,’ successfully setting a benchmark for the next-generation smart mines. By digitally and intelligently analyzing the entire mining process, we have achieved predictability and controllability in uranium mining,” said Yuan Xu, Party Secretary and Chairman of China National Uranium Corporation.

In the past, uranium mining in China was primarily concentrated on volcanic and granitic uranium deposits in the southern regions. However, over the past two decades, significant breakthroughs have been made in the exploration of sandstone-type uranium deposits in northern China, marking the beginning of a major shift of China’s “Uranium Capital” from south to north. Notably, in 2023, China announced its top ten uranium exploration achievements, forecasting uranium resources exceeding 2.8 million tons. The majority of these uranium resources are concentrated in northern sandstone-type uranium deposits, among which the Ordos Basin has emerged as China’s largest uranium resource base.

Currently, China ranks first in the world in terms of the total installed capacity of nuclear power units both in operation and under construction. The “Guoyou No. 1” technology will be fully implemented and rapidly promoted for uranium resource development in northern Chinese basins such as Songliao, Erlian, Ordos, and Ili, supporting the establishment of a number of new large-scale uranium mining bases and ensuring comprehensive satisfaction of the uranium resource needs for the development of nuclear energy.