2025 was a year of two uranium markets: a spot price that fell hard and recovered, and a long-term contract price that barely blinked before climbing to records in 2026.
The numbers
| Indicator (US$/lb U3O8) | Dec 2024 | 2025 low | 2025 high | Dec 2025 | Sep 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spot (month-end) | $72.63 | $64.23 (Mar) | $82.63 (Sep) | $81.55 | $89.63 |
| Long-term (month-end) | $80.50 | $80.00 (Feb–Jun) | $86.50 (Dec) | $86.50 | $96.50 |
The 2025 average month-end spot price was about $73.54/lb, down from $85.14 in 2024. Yet the spot price ended 2025 almost $9 higher than it started, and the long-term price finished the year $6 higher.
Why spot fell in early 2025
- Financial buying paused. The Sprott Physical Uranium Trust, the largest spot buyer of 2021–2024, raises money to buy uranium only when its units trade at or above net asset value. With its units at a discount for much of late 2024 and early 2025, it bought little.
- Utilities were well covered for the near term and had little need to buy spot pounds, while traders held inventory.
- Broad risk-off markets early in 2025 hit uranium equities and fund flows.
What turned the market
- Policy support for nuclear power. In May 2025 the US administration issued executive orders aiming to quadruple US nuclear capacity to 400 GW by 2050; more than 30 countries have endorsed the pledge, first made at COP28 in 2023, to triple global nuclear capacity by 2050.
- Supply discipline. In August 2025 Kazatomprom said it would cut 2026 production by about 10% versus its subsoil-use levels (roughly 3,000 tU), arguing that uncovered utility demand did not justify full production. Niger’s nationalisation of Orano’s SOMAIR mine in June 2025 added uncertainty about African supply.
- Funds returned. SPUT raised capital again from mid-2025 and resumed buying; in January 2026 its purchases helped push spot above $100/lb intra-month.
- Data-centre power demand. Technology companies signed long-term power deals with existing nuclear plants and backed new reactor designs, strengthening the long-term demand story.
2026 so far
Spot started 2026 with a sharp rally (January month-end $94.28), then settled in the mid-$80s through mid-year and ended September at $89.63. The more important story is the long-term price, which climbed every quarter to $96.50 by August 2026 — above its previous record of $95 set in 2007–2008. A rising term price signals that utilities are signing contracts at levels that can finance new mines, such as NexGen’s Rook I project, which received its Canadian construction licence in March 2026.
What to watch for the rest of 2026 and 2027
- Kazatomprom’s 2027 production plans and its guidance of 27,500–29,000 tU (100% basis) for 2026.
- Utility long-term contracting volumes, which have run below annual reactor requirements for years.
- US policy: the ban on Russian enriched uranium (with waivers only until the end of 2027) and Section 232 critical-mineral measures.
- Whether physical funds keep buying, which matters most for spot.
Track the latest month-end figures on our uranium spot price page and the long-run picture on uranium price history. We do not publish price forecasts.
This article is general information, not investment advice. Figures are as of the dates stated and can change.
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