Britain intends to become the first European country to produce advanced uranium fuel, which is currently only commercially available from Russia, AFP reported.
The UK government has said it will invest £300m in building a high-grade low-enriched uranium (HALEU) program that will help "displace" Moscow from global energy markets.
"We have stood up to Putin on oil and gas and financial markets. We will not allow him to hold us captive on nuclear fuel," Energy Minister Claire Coutinho said in a statement.
"This will be critical to energy security at home and abroad and builds on Britain's historic competitive advantages," she added.
HALEU fuel is needed to power many of the next generation of advanced nuclear reactors, including the so-called small module versions that the UK intends to use.
The content of uranium-235 in the fuel is between 5 and 20%, i.e. above the five percent that power most nuclear plants currently operating.
According to the International Atomic Energy Agency, HALEU production has recently begun in the US, but only a Russian plant is producing uranium on a commercial scale.
The British investment is part of plans to provide up to 24 gigawatts of electricity from nuclear power by 2050, representing a quarter of the UK's electricity needs.
The first plant will be in North West England and is planned to be operational by 2030, the government said.
It hopes to have 95% of Britain's electricity from low-carbon sources by 2030, and the grid to be completely decarbonised by 2035.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak recently came under fire for delaying the ban on the sale of all petrol and diesel cars by five years to 2035.
Critics say this will make it harder to achieve the UK's goal of net zero emissions by 2050/BGNES
