However, the high price levels seen in 2007 didn't last. The 2008 economic crisis sent prices for uranium crashing alongside other commodities. By early 2009, prices had fallen below the key US$50 level and slid further in 2010 to the US$40 range. Signs of a global economic recovery and the coinciding rising demand for energy metals in 2011 was very price positive for uranium.

Still, the low price environment over the years prior significantly sidelined uranium exploration and development, heightening supply-side concerns. As a result, prior to Fukushima uranium prices were shooting up past the US$70 level.

After the Fukushima fallout, the U3O8 spot price was on a slow slide to lows not seen since the start of the century, bottoming below US$18 in 2016. For the next three years, the price of uranium struggled to break US$25.

As mentioned, in 2020, the uranium spot price began moving higher, increasing more than 30 percent in the first half of the year. By September 2021, prices had hit a nine year high of US$50.80.

Uranium kicked off 2022 at US$43.66. Civil unrest in Kazakhstan due to mounting energy prices in the nation, along with the launch of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, were behind the positive performance for uranium in the first few months of the year. Between late February and mid-April, uranium prices rose from US$43.94 to hit an 11 year high of US$64.61.

At that time, it seemed utilities companies were finally returning to the uranium market to boost their fuel supplies. Uranium supply challenges related to conversion and enrichment also aided in pushing uranium prices higher. From April 2021 to April 2022, the price of uranium climbed by a massive 106.47 percent.

However, by the end of June 2022, uranium had fallen to the US$50 range as the broader commodities market faced economic turbulence brought on by the US Federal Reserve's efforts to curtail rising inflation by hiking interest rates.

Even so, uranium prices did see support as countries around the world look to nuclear power to help bridge the gap in the transition to cleaner energy sources. This is evidenced by the market’s ability to sustain a significant upward trend in uranium prices that began near the end of the first quarter of 2023 and culminated in triple digit prices by the first month of 2024.

During the second half of 2023, the most favorable supply and demand fundamentals in more than a decade, began to take shape and that reflected in the performance the uranium price.

“What has been clear for some time is utility uncertainty around future supply as secondary supplies are drawn down and primary supplies tighten; this resulted in increased utility purchasing in the spot market in Q2 and Q3 of this year," Ben Finegold, who runs uranium research at Ocean Wall, commented to INN via email in October 2023. "The coup in Niger, production cuts from Cameco and increased activity from financial speculators and traders have put further pressure on prices.”

Chris Temple of the National Investor told the Investing News Network in mid-2023 that investors are "going to see US$100 a pound again for uranium inside of two years." Temple's prediction would come true much sooner as the spot price of uranium breached the US$100 mark in January 2024 following news that top producer Kazatomprom expects to miss its production targets for 2024 and 2025.

Will the uranium price climb even higher? That question is still to be answered, although Justin Huhn, founder and publisher of Uranium Insider, had some advice for uranium market watchers when INN spoke with him in early 2023. He highlighted his positive long-term outlook by comparing the current uranium market cycle to the nine innings of a baseball game.

"We're probably somewhere on the tail end of inning three," he said. "I think we've got a long ways to go, and in these types of markets the mania phase usually happens in inning eight and nine. So there's a lot of excitement ahead of us still."

Investor takeaway

We've answered the question, "What was the highest price for uranium?" But it remains to be seen if uranium will continue its rebound. The main factors to watch continue to be growth in the number of nuclear reactors online and under construction, as well as decreasing mine supply.

For more information on entering the uranium market, click here to read our overview of stocks, exchange-traded funds and uranium futures.