Uranium (UXJ26) and energy have been a much-discussed theme over the past year or so, mainly due to the extreme energy requirements of modern data centers and AI workloads. For the past month, though, the news was dominated by uranium in a specific part of the world: Iran. Iran holds over 450 kg of highly enriched uranium (HEU), according to some estimates. Donald Trump is considering acquiring this stockpile, either through diplomacy or through brute force.
There are multiple reasons why investors should look at uranium differently than maybe a couple of years ago. Now, institutional investors are taking a keen interest in the silvery-grey metal, even as a standalone asset class. This institutional participation helps remove supply from the market and protects against downside risk. Moreover, the U.S. government has committed $2.7 billion over the next 10 years to broaden the country’s uranium enrichment capabilities. As a result, the radioactive material is now considered a strategic resource, just like lithium and rare earth minerals.
