The ongoing tariff battle between the US and Canada has put uranium supplies in jeopardy, threatening the nuclear energy industry and its reliance on Canadian imports. The Trump administration's proposed 10% tariff on energy products from Canada, although paused for now, could lead to a significant price hike for uranium, a critical component in nuclear reactors.

The US currently relies on Canada for over a quarter of its uranium supplies, making it the largest foreign supplier. Cameco, one of the world's biggest uranium producers based in Canada, warned that the tariffs would inevitably lead to higher prices. According to Cameco CFO Grant Isaac, a 10% tariff would result in a 10% rise in uranium prices, regardless of the country of origin.

The potential price increase could have significant implications for the nuclear energy industry, which has been experiencing a resurgence in recent years. The growth of energy-hungry data centers, particularly among tech giants like Google, Amazon, Microsoft, and Meta, has driven up demand for nuclear energy. However, the industry's reliance on foreign uranium supplies, particularly from Canada, has raised concerns about energy dominance and national security.

Efforts to build up a domestic uranium supply chain have gained bipartisan support, with some tech companies expressing interest in investing in the industry. However, the US is still constrained by its limited uranium reserves, holding only about 1% of the world's total. In contrast, Canada holds around 10 times as much, making it a critical supplier for the US nuclear energy industry.

The Nuclear Energy Institute, a trade association based in Washington, DC, expressed caution about the impact of tariffs on the industry, citing concerns about hindering growth and innovation in the energy sector. Meanwhile, environmental groups and Indigenous activists have raised concerns about the environmental and social implications of uranium mining, particularly in the US.

The tariff dispute has also highlighted the complex web of interests surrounding uranium and nuclear energy. President Trump, a long-time supporter of the fossil fuel industry, has been accused of trying to carve out exceptions for nuclear energy technologies that have garnered support from extractive industries and Big Tech.

The situation has sparked a wider debate about energy dominance, national security, and the role of nuclear energy in the transition to a low-carbon economy. As the tariff battle continues to unfold, the implications for the nuclear energy industry, data centers, and the environment will be closely watched.

In the midst of this uncertainty, the emergence of new technologies, such as DeepSeek's AI models in China, which can ostensibly use much less energy than US rivals, has added another layer of complexity to the future of data center energy use and nuclear energy.

As the US navigates this complex landscape, one thing is clear: the fate of uranium supplies and the nuclear energy industry hangs in the balance, with far-reaching implications for energy dominance, national security, and the environment.