Tech Giants' Power Crunch Holds $3.1 Trillion Opportunity

Global energy demand is rising, and the need for carbon-free power is putting nuclear energy back at the center of the strategy.

According to Wood Mackenzie, more than 70 governments are considering new commercial reactors. However, these plans require uranium—a commodity that is becoming a key pressure point.

Prices have already started to rise. In a recent interview, Sprott Asset Management CEO John Ciampaglia said long-term uranium prices are at "over $90 per pound," but added that "on an inflation-adjusted basis, we still haven't reached the 18-year highs."

This discrepancy matters because costs across the industry have risen sharply. So if inflation-adjusted prices remain below historical peaks, they may not be enough to spur new supply. Worse, demand is becoming structural, while supply remains slow, capital-intensive, and exposed to political risk.

Demand Surge on a Trillion-Dollar Scale

The demand case is expanding beyond traditional decarbonization goals. Wood Mackenzie's base case forecasts global nuclear capacity will more than double by 2060. By their calculations, that represents a $3.1 trillion investment opportunity spanning reactor and fuel infrastructure.

In the near term, data center power needs are driving decisions that once seemed optional. According to Wood Mackenzie, reactor life extensions, restarts, and power uprates are now being used to meet the electricity demands of hyperscale computing companies. Beyond 2035, growth is expected to come from conventional units and next-generation designs, including small modular reactors.

According to Uranium Insider founder Justin Huhn, roughly 80 reactors are under construction globally, and utilities are already signing contracts to cover the early to mid-2030s. However, he warned that many of the mines needed to supply that period have not yet been built.

The 2030s Supply Cliff

The biggest risk may be timing, not overall demand. Ciampaglia noted that many Western utilities remain in "maintenance mode," simply replacing current fuel requirements rather than actively contracting for future supply. He pointed to U.S. government data showing coverage levels will drop sharply around 2030.

Utilities may assume future projects will come online in time, but mining history suggests otherwise.

"We know in mining that things never go according to plan, never go according to budget," Ciampaglia said. If utilities wait until late in the cycle to address uncovered demand, they could face a crowded contracting window with limited uncommitted supply.

Uranium is essential to reactor operations—there is no substitute. As uncontracted mine output declines, competition for deliverable material could intensify quickly.

Cycle Bottlenecks and Geopolitical Reshoring

Over the past few years, conversion and enrichment have drawn the most attention, particularly after sanctions and trade adjustments involving Russian materials. But that pressure point is now shifting. Ciampaglia said conversion and enrichment pressures are "slowly being resolved," while procurement focus is turning toward raw U3O8.

Capital is following this shift. Physical uranium vehicles, mining companies, and large energy buyers are all seeking more direct exposure to upstream supply. Sprott Physical Uranium Trust offers the most direct exposure to physical metal, holding 81.5 million pounds of uranium oxide.

Meanwhile, governments are increasingly treating the fuel cycle as a strategic issue. Analysts say the result is a market where demand shows little price elasticity, supply moves slowly, and the clock is working against buyers.