If, like me, you’re a voracious news consumer, you’ll no doubt agree nuclear power is making huge headlines on every continent these days. Europe is excited to boost its nuclear power, India wishes it had more uranium, Iran is realizing its nuclear power plans without regard for the western world’s fears of potential weapons production, South Africa’s nuclear policy is getting that country’s cabinet support, the United States is embracing uranium as a panacea to its oil addiction in much the same way a heroin user embraces methadone… the list goes on.

For the moment though, all that excitement is synonymous with long-term market growth only. While spot uranium prices have recently stabilized, the global positive sentiment has yet to resurrect a market all but killed by last fall’s massive price correction in the sector. Then again, the positive news continues to increase in frequency and it’ll be interesting to see if the coming summer brings its usual market doldrums.

Here’s a look at some of last week’s major nuclear happenings around the world:

Kazakhstan's national atomic energy company signed an agreement with French nuclear giant Areva (OTO: ARVCF, Stock Forum) to jointly produce uranium until 2039. According to reports from The Associated Press, the resulting joint venture is called Katco, with Areva holding a 51% stake. Financial details are still blurry, but Katco is gearing up to produce 4,000 tons of uranium a year.

This is an important partnership. After all, most of France's electricity comes from nuclear power and Kazakhstan is said to sit on the world's second-largest uranium reserves. Under this new agreement, Areva will sell the uranium and help Kazatomprom in the development of uranium production.

Bloomberg reported China, already enthused about nuclear power, plans to add more nuclear capacity by 2020, increase uranium imports and explore for the fuel in Kazakhstan, Niger, and other nations.

The Asian tiger is turning to alternative energy sources to wean itself off polluting coal, which generates nearly 80% of its electricity. Nuclear power is still just a drop in the bucket; come 2020, it will account for about 5% of China’s total power output by 2020.

In the U.K., nuclear energy provides about 18% of the nation’s power, but most of its existing nuclear and coal capacity is closing in the next 15 years, which could leave an energy gap of up to 52 gigawatts by 2025. The hope is that a new generation of nuclear plants could cut carbon dioxide emissions while replacing the outgoing power.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel is putting her weight behind a return to nuclear power for her country. Merkel recently advocated reversing current government policy to phase out nuclear power by 2021. Gas prices in Germany are breaking the bank at $9 a gallon; nuclear power could help Germans reduce their reliance on foreign fossil fuels.

With French President Nicolas Sarkozy having already said he wants to work with Germany to produce nuclear energy, analysts are once again building buzz about a “nuclear renaissance”.

Switzerland, also on a quest to secure energy supplies, plans to build its first nuclear power station in more than two decades. Atel, a Swiss energy group recently submitted to the government plans for a new nuclear power plant in the north of the country, near one of the country’s five existing nuclear facilities, which currently generate 38% of Swiss electricity.

South Africa, crippled by a near collapse of its electricity grid last winter, has just given more power to its nuclear industry in an effort to ensure energy security and infuse its local investors with much-needed confidence. A new nuclear policy just approved by cabinet brings changes to uranium mining and nuclear waste management in hopes the metal will boost local production of electricity, 95% of which is currently generated from coal. 

In the United States, presidential hopeful Senator John McCain is again throwing his weight behind uranium, giving kudos to France for its aggressive nuclear policy and slamming Senator Barack Obama's energy policy, which McCain feels doesn’t pay enough attention to nuclear power.

All that talk is sure to make the summer interesting for investors. For now, spot uranium prices are stable at US$60 a pound U3O8. According to price publisher Tradetech, two utilities seeking 400,000 pounds of the metal received offers lat week that are rumored to exceed today’s spot price levels. Demand is still discretionary, but totals roughly one million pounds U3O8 equivalent. Sellers are no longer willing to offload surplus material at discounted prices and are instead testing whether the market has indeed bottomed at current price levels. Time will tell.