Australia's Uranium Mining Landscape: The World's Largest Reserve Holders and What's Coming Next

Australia holds a unique position in the global uranium market—it sits atop the world’s biggest recoverable uranium reserves with approximately 1.68 million tonnes identified as of 2021. This represents roughly 28 percent of the planet’s total uranium deposits. Yet despite this abundance, Australia neither uses nuclear power domestically nor consumes any of this resource for energy generation. Instead, the nation exports its uranium supply, making it a major commodity contributor to the country’s export economy, accounting for 17 percent of national energy exports.

Currently, three main mining complexes operate across South Australia, positioning the country as the fourth-largest global uranium producer. In 2022, Australian operations generated 4,553 tonnes of uranium—representing approximately 8 percent of worldwide uranium production.

Australia’s Three Operating Uranium Mining Complexes

Olympic Dam: The World’s Largest Uranium Orebody

BHP operates Olympic Dam, which holds the distinction of being not only Australia’s biggest uranium facility but also the single largest known uranium orebody globally. Launched in 1988, the mine generates uranium alongside copper, gold and silver as co-products from an integrated mining and processing operation that combines both underground and surface extraction methods.

Recent production figures demonstrate robust output: BHP reported 3,603 tonnes of U3O8 during fiscal year 2024, an increase from 3,406 tonnes in the previous fiscal year. The operation hosts proven and probable reserves of 558 million tonnes grading at 590 g/t uranium, complemented by low-grade sulphide reserves of 42 million tonnes at 280 g/t uranium. With mining operations projected to continue until 2081, Olympic Dam remains one of the world’s most significant long-term uranium sources.

Quasar Resources’ Four Mile Project

The Four Mile facility, operated by Quasar Resources (a General Atomics subsidiary), represents another critical Australian uranium mining operation. This in-situ recovery (ISR) mine began commercial production in 2014 with an anticipated 15-year lifespan. The asset comprises three distinct deposits and coordinates processing with the nearby Beverley ISR facility, also owned by General Atomics through its Heathgate Resources division.

The World Nuclear Association estimates Four Mile’s average annual output at approximately 2,000 tonnes of U3O8. The most recent publicly available production data from 2022 showed 1,503 tonnes delivered. As a privately held operation, complete transparency on current reserves remains limited.

Honeymoon Mine: A Revival Story

The Honeymoon ISR facility exemplifies industry recovery and renewed investor confidence. First identified in the 1970s and initially brought online in 2011, the mine closed after just two years due to operational challenges and suppressed uranium pricing. Boss Energy acquired the asset from Uranium One in 2015 and orchestrated a restart strategy, successfully resuming production in April 2024.

Boss Energy delivered its first uranium shipment to European nuclear utilities in July 2024, marking a significant milestone. During fiscal Q4 2024 (ending June 30), the operation produced 28,844 pounds of U3O8, increasing to 89,516 pounds during fiscal Q1 2025. Tracking toward its fiscal year 2025 guidance of 850,000 pounds U3O8, the mine operates under an annual export authorization of 3.3 million pounds, with the current mining plan covering 36 million pounds of its total 71.6 million pound JORC resource.

The Next Generation: Major Undeveloped Australian Uranium Deposits

With 36 identified uranium deposits across the continent, Australia’s future production capacity depends on advancing several large-scale development projects now in various permitting and assessment stages.

Mulga Rock: Western Australia’s Leading Development Project

Deep Yellow’s Mulga Rock represents the most advanced undeveloped Australian uranium project, particularly within Western Australia. Discovered in 1979 near Kalgoorlie, the polymetallic deposit contains not only uranium but also copper, nickel, cobalt, zinc and rare earth elements. The asset encompasses a JORC mineral resource estimate of 115 million tonnes grading 420 ppm, equating to 104.8 million pounds of contained U3O8, with proven and probable reserves of 42 million pounds.

Deep Yellow projects production capacity of 3.5 million pounds annually over a mine life exceeding 15 years. A revised definitive feasibility study is underway with completion targeted for late 2025.

Yeelirrie: Permitting Challenges Persist

Cameco controls the Yeelirrie project, another substantial Western Australian uranium asset discovered during the 1970s. The deposit carries a JORC mineral resource estimate of 128.1 million pounds U3O8 at 0.15 percent average ore grade. Federal approval was granted in 2019, but state-level authorization was rescinded in January 2022 after Cameco failed to achieve substantial project commencement within the required timeframe. While the company retained the option to reapply for extensions under existing regulatory frameworks, no active development work proceeds at present.

Samphire: Early-Stage but Progressing

Alligator Energy’s Samphire ISR project in South Australia hosts two deposits—Blackbush and Plumbush—with a combined JORC mineral resource of 12.4 million tonnes grading 640 ppm, containing 17.5 million pounds of uranium in indicated and inferred categories. An updated scoping study completed in December 2023 targeted annualized production of 1.2 million pounds. As of October 2024, a pilot plant field recovery trial commenced, positioning the asset for a comprehensive feasibility study scheduled for 2025.

Market Dynamics and the Path Forward

Uranium Price Recovery and Future Trajectory

Following depressed pricing that persisted since the 2011 Fukushima incident, uranium markets experienced significant momentum in 2023. Spot prices surged past US$100 per pound in January 2024—the first time achieving this threshold in 17 years. While prices subsequently retreated to the US$80 range, market analysts maintain bullish outlooks for renewed triple-digit pricing driven by fundamental supply-demand dynamics.

Supply Deficit Emerging as Critical Factor

The World Nuclear Association forecasts uranium production stability through 2030, followed by a potential 50 percent decline from 2030 to 2040—a projection that underscores the urgency of accelerating exploration and production before that downturn materializes. A 2023 Sprott report quantifies the problem more precisely: uranium supply is expected to lag demand by approximately 1.5 billion pounds by 2040.

This widening gap creates both risk and opportunity. Higher prices become increasingly necessary to justify expansion of existing operations and bring new deposits into commercial viability. As production cycles grow more complex—influenced by geopolitical instability, supply chain disruptions, inflationary pressures on extraction costs, and unforeseen operational challenges—the uranium industry faces mounting headwinds in achieving cost-effective production expansion.

Nuclear Energy’s Growing Role in Decarbonization

Against this backdrop of tightening supply, nuclear power’s strategic importance continues rising. The US Energy Information Association anticipates nuclear generation will expand by more than 22 percent between 2022 and 2050 as nations pursue net-zero emission targets and transition to cleaner energy sources. This anticipated demand growth reinforces the necessity of Australian uranium mining expansion to meet anticipated global consumption requirements.