AKIPRESS.COM - Kazakhstan, the world's largest uranium producer, may take back some assets from the joint ventures it has set up in the nuclear sector, President Nursultan Nazarbayev said on Tuesday.

Some joint venture partners of state nuclear firm Kazatomprom "are not meeting their obligations", Nazarbayev said at a meeting with Kazatomprom Chief Executive Askar Zhumagaliyev, the president's office said in a statement, reports Reuters.

"In this regard it is necessary to either ensure that they (partners) meet their obligations or look into reclaiming those assets in the interests of our state," Nazarbayev's office quoted him as saying.

It provided no details and Kazatomprom could not be reached for comment.

Kazatomprom has joint ventures with French firm Areva , Canada's Cameco, Japan's Sumitomo Corp and Kansai Electric Power, several Russian firms including Rosatom and a few Chinese companies.

Kazakhstan produced 23,800 tonnes of uranium last year. Kazatomprom's share of total output was 13,000 while its joint venture partners accounted for the remainder.

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