OREANDA-NEWS. Germany officially stops mining uranium. This was reported on Tuesday, June 1, by the dpa agency. According to media, the last batch of this radioactive element leaves the territory of the Wismut GmbH enterprise in the city of Königstein (Hesse). The delivery includes 19.5 tons of a mixture of water and uranium oxide.

Since 1997, purchases from the company have been carried out by the American company Nuclear Fuels. The cessation of production is controlled by the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

The planned production of uranium in Germany was completed in 1990. However, further development of the remaining reserves — including in Saxony and Thuringia — produced up to 3,350 tons of this substance.

Until 1990, the GDR was the fourth largest producer of uranium in the world. Since 1946, about 216,350 tons have been delivered only to the USSR, which used the radioactive element for it's nuclear program.

Since 1991, Wismut GmbH has been engaged in the restoration of environmental damage caused by production, and it's conservation. The Federal Government has allocated about 6.8 billion euros for this purpose.