DevEx drilling strikes uranium at Nabarlek - Australian Mining

DevEx Resources has announced a uranium discovery at Nabarlek in the Northern Territory. The company's drilling has intersected mineralised zones in exploration activity at the site, marking a find in a region with historical uranium production.

Where this fits

This discovery is a materials story, not a generation story. Australia is building a renewables-heavy grid that depends almost entirely on Chinese-made solar panels, batteries and inverters, all processed and assembled in supply chains powered by coal. Uranium, by contrast, is a firm fuel: a small mass of it delivers years of dispatchable, zero-emission electricity from a plant that operates continuously, regardless of weather. A domestic uranium resource removes one vulnerability from the energy supply chain. It also represents the fuel for the one low-emission firm generation technology Australia has banned itself from deploying: nuclear power.

What it means

Australia holds substantial uranium reserves and has the technical and industrial capability to mine and enrich fuel. Finding new deposits strengthens the case for energy sovereignty, but only if the fuel can be used. The grid transition is being locked into weather-dependent renewables and gas firming, bound to Chinese supply chains for every panel and battery, while a proven, emissions-free, firm alternative sits in the ground untouched by law. A Nabarlek mine produces uranium. A different energy policy would produce electricity from it.