Uranium Projects in Central Asian Countries: Prospects and Challenges of Implementation

Abstract

The article analyzes the issues of possible construction of nuclear power plants, to which the political elite of most Central Asian countries has recently shown deep interest. The worsening problem of power shortages in the region necessitates the search for alternative power-generating capacities. Emphasis is placed on the ura-nium potential of Central Asian countries, which allows them not only to use it as a resource for the creation of new energy facilities based on new technologies, but also turns these countries into an object of global geopo-litical competition. In the future, the interest of Central Asian countries in the implementation of uranium pro-jects will only increase due to socio-economic factors, such as the need to ensure energy security as a strategic basis for sustainable economic development and meeting the needs of the population in electricity. It is con-cluded that both internal (environmental threats, political instability) and external (geopolitical rivalry) factors will slow down the implementation of uranium projects.