India uranium power OK: Bishop
India could get the green light to receive uranium from WA within a year if negotiations on a nuclear usage treaty went as planned, Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said yesterday.
Ms Bishop said she was confident mines such as the one being explored at Wiluna would soon be given Federal Parliament's imprimatur.
Speaking in Delhi to Indian and Australian journalists, Ms Bishop said the US and Canada had recently signed treaties to ensure confidence that the uranium would be used for peaceful purposes.
"I understand there is a way that our concerns and India's disposition can converge," she said. "We have always thought that India is a trusted and reliable user of uranium and that's why we'll be happy to conclude such an agreement."
The Government was keen to support India's ambitions to increase its nuclear energy from 3 per cent to 25 per cent because it would be good for the Australian economy and India's greenhouse gas emissions.
Ms Bishop said Australia was looking to India as an economic and strategic partner in an historic shift to the Indo-Pacific region.
"We want to be the partner of choice for Indian energy security," she said. "We are open for business. We're particularly open for Indian investment."
Colleen Egan is in Delhi with the Walkley Media Exchange Program, funded by the Australia India Council
