Uranium Enrichment (Domestic Nuclear Fuel Cycle)

Brazil's Navy developed gas centrifuge uranium enrichment technology domestically, making the country one of fewer than 10 nations capable of enriching uranium. The technology was originally developed for the nuclear submarine program's reactor fuel.

INB (Indústrias Nucleares do Brasil) operates enrichment facilities at Resende (Rio de Janeiro). The capability covers the full nuclear fuel cycle: mining uranium in Bahia, converting it to uranium hexafluoride, enriching to low-enriched uranium (LEU), and fabricating fuel assemblies for Brazil's Angra nuclear power plants.

The strategic significance is energy sovereignty: Brazil does not depend on foreign enrichment services for its nuclear power plants or submarine reactor. This is a capability that most countries — including major economies like Japan, South Korea, and Germany — do not possess independently.