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Annual Energy Review

September 2012  PDF | previous editions
Release Date: September 27, 2012

Table 4.9 Uranium Exploration and Development Drilling, 1949-2011
Table 4.9  Uranium Exploration and Development Drilling, 1949-2011




Year		 Exploration 1 Development 2 Total
Holes Drilled Footage Drilled Holes Drilled Footage Drilled Holes Drilled Footage Drilled
Thousands Million Feet Thousands Million Feet Thousands Million Feet
1949 NA 0.36 NA 0.05 NA 0.41
1950 NA .57 NA .21 NA .78
1951 NA 1.08 NA .35 NA 1.43
1952 NA 1.36 NA .30 NA 1.66
1953 NA 3.65 NA .37 NA 4.02
1954 NA 4.06 NA .55 NA 4.61
1955 NA 5.27 NA .76 NA 6.03
1956 NA 7.29 NA 1.50 NA 8.79
1957 NA 7.35 NA 1.85 NA 9.20
1958 25.32 3.76 22.93 3.49 48.25 7.25
1959 16.25 2.37 19.59 3.28 35.84 5.65
1960 7.34 1.40 24.40 4.21 31.73 5.61
1961 8.26 1.32 19.31 3.19 27.57 4.51
1962 6.44 1.48 12.87 2.43 19.31 3.91
1963 8.47 .88 13.53 1.98 22.01 2.86
1964 5.97 .97 9.91 1.25 15.88 2.21
1965 6.23 1.16 7.33 .95 13.56 2.11
1966 5.75 1.80 13.18 2.40 18.93 4.20
1967 12.79 5.44 16.95 5.33 29.74 10.76
1968 38.47 16.23 19.53 7.53 58.00 23.75
1969 47.85 20.47 28.01 9.39 75.86 29.86
1970 43.98 17.98 14.87 5.55 58.85 23.53
1971 28.42 11.40 10.44 4.05 38.86 15.45
1972 26.91 11.82 9.71 3.61 36.62 15.42
1973 22.56 10.83 11.70 5.59 34.26 16.42
1974 27.40 14.72 12.30 6.84 39.70 21.56
1975 34.29 15.69 21.60 9.73 55.89 25.42
1976 40.41 20.36 27.23 14.44 67.64 34.80
1977 62.60 27.96 30.86 17.62 93.45 45.58
1978 75.07 28.95 29.29 19.15 104.35 48.10
1979 60.46 28.07 30.19 13.01 90.65 41.08
1980 39.61 19.60 20.19 8.59 59.80 28.19
1981 17.75 10.87 8.67 3.35 26.42 14.22
1982 6.97 4.23 3.00 1.13 9.97 5.36
1983 4.29 2.09 3.01 1.08 7.30 3.17
1984 4.80 2.26 .72 .29 5.52 2.55
1985 2.88 1.42 .77 .34 3.65 1.76
1986 1.99 1.10 1.85 .97 3.83 2.07
1987 1.82 1.11 1.99 .86 3.81 1.97
1988 2.03 1.28 3.18 1.73 5.21 3.01
1989 2.09 1.43 1.75 .80 3.84 2.23
1990 1.51 .87 1.91 .81 3.42 1.68
1991 1.62 .97 1.57 .87 3.20 1.84
1992 .94 .56 .83 .50 1.77 1.06
1993 .36 .22 1.67 .89 2.02 1.11
1994 .52 .34 .48 .32 1.00 .66
1995 .58 .40 1.73 .95 2.31 1.35
1996 1.12 .88 3.58 2.16 4.70 3.05
1997 1.94 1.33 5.86 3.56 7.79 4.88
1998 1.37 .89 5.23 3.75 6.60 4.64
1999 .27 .18 2.91 2.33 3.18 2.50
2000 W W W W 1.55 1.02
2001 .00 .00 1.02 .66 1.02 .66
2002 W W W W W W
2003 NA NA NA NA W W
2004 W W W W 2.19 1.25
2005 W W W W 3.14 1.67
2006 1.47 .82 3.43 1.89 4.90 2.71
2007 4.35 2.20 5.00 2.95 9.35 5.15
2008 5.20 2.54 4.16 2.55 9.36 5.09
2009 1.79 1.05 3.89 2.69 5.68 3.74
2010 2.44 1.46 4.77 3.44 7.21 4.90
2011 5.44 3.32 5.16 3.00 10.60 6.33
1Includes surface drilling in search of new ore deposits or extensions of known deposits and drilling at
the location of a discovery up to the time the company decides sufficient ore reserves are present to justify
commercial exploitation.		 Note:    Totals may not equal sum of components due to independent rounding.
2Includes all surface drilling on an ore deposit to determine more precisely size, grade, and
configuration subsequent to the time that commercial exploitation is deemed feasible.		 Web Page:  For related information, see http://www.eia.gov/nuclear/.
NA=Not available.  W=Value withheld to avoid disclosure of individual company data.   Sources:  ·  1949-1981—U.S. Department of Energy, Grand Junction Office, Statistical Data of the
Uranium Industry, January 1, 1983, Report No. GJO-100 (1983), Table VIII-5.  ·  1982-2002—U.S. Energy
Information Administration (EIA), Uranium Industry Annual, annual reports.  ·  2003-2005—EIA, "Domestic
Uranium Production Report," annual reports.  ·  2006 forward—EIA, "2011 Domestic Uranium Production
Report" (May 2012), Table 1.
U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA)