India and Australia Sign Uranium Deal in Major Energy Cooperation Move

Darwin, 10 July : India and Australia have signed a significant energy cooperation agreement, including uranium exports, during Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Australia.

The agreement, signed on Thursday (July 9), will allow Australia to export uranium to support India’s civilian nuclear energy programme. The two countries also agreed to expand cooperation in renewable energy, critical minerals and green hydrogen sectors.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said at a joint press conference in Melbourne that Australia and India are not only close partners but also close friends. He said Australian uranium would help India reduce its dependence on fossil fuels while also creating new market opportunities for Australia’s resources sector.

India has set a target of achieving 100 gigawatts of nuclear power generation capacity by 2047. To meet this goal, New Delhi has long been interested in accessing Australia’s vast uranium reserves. Meanwhile, Canberra is seeking new markets to reduce its trade dependence on China.

Although the two countries signed a civil nuclear cooperation agreement in 2014, uranium exports remained limited. Australia had maintained strict safeguards to ensure that its nuclear fuel would be used only for peaceful purposes, particularly electricity generation.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Australia’s technology, capital and natural resources could play an important role in accelerating India’s energy transition. He also invited Australian businesses to make long-term investments in India’s infrastructure development projects, including roads, ports, railways and urban infrastructure.

Meanwhile, Australia’s largest pension fund, AustralianSuper, announced an additional investment of 500 million Australian dollars in India’s National Investment and Infrastructure Fund.

India is currently Australia’s fifth-largest trading partner. Around one million people of Indian origin live in Australia. As part of his visit, Prime Minister Modi is also scheduled to attend a gathering of the Indian diaspora in Melbourne.

The visit is being viewed as an important step toward strengthening economic and strategic ties between the two countries.

Source: Reuters