We thought by now we'd heard it all. But the quote which follows, given to us in a tape-recorded telephone interview by the man who obtains nuclear fuel for the largest nuclear utility in the United States, surprised even us.

According to Friday's Nuclear Market Review (NMR), many market participants were left stunned by the recent record jump in the weekly spot uranium price. The market has increasingly diverged between those who have U3O8 and those without. Utilities with existing supply contracts "are heaving a sigh of relief," NMR editor Treva Klingbiel wrote. And those trying to find uranium in today's climate "are forced to face the reality of a seller's market," she said.

Soaring yellowcake prices have accelerated a greater number of uranium juniors rolling off the assembly line. As fast as stock promoters can revive old shells, joint venture a more serious uranium company's castaway property into the re-named shell, and then wheel a former 'big name' out of retirement (or a nursing home), the company will announce they are in the 'hunt' for uranium.