"High prices stimulate exploration. If you explore more, you will find more -- in Africa, Australia, maybe some additional resources in China," he told Reuters in an interview late on Monday on the sidelines of a nuclear conference.

"There are some programmes for uranium (deposits) to grow to 16 million tonnes and even more, depending on additional resources," he said, adding that the total could rise as high as 22 million tonnes.

At present there are 4.7 million tonnes of the metal available in deposits worldwide, he said, enough to power current nuclear programmes -- which consume 70,000 or 80,000 tonnes annually -- for several decades.

Spot prices for uranium ore concentrate, or yellow cake, have surged on the back of renewed interest in nuclear energy, seen by proponents as a means of countering high oil prices and cutting global carbon dioxide emissions.

Prices hit a record high of US$136 a pound at the end of June, up from US$7 in 2000, but have since retreated to US$75.

But Sokolov said uranium price fluctuations would not significantly affect nuclear power plants, as natural uranium accounts for only 5 percent of final energy production costs.

"Uranium fuel accounts for 15 percent of the total cost in nuclear plants, and natural uranium only accounts for one-third of the fuel cost," he said.

In comparison oil and gas prices make up 70 percent of the final cost of any energy they produce, he said.

"This is the advantage of nuclear power."

PEBBLE BED FUTURE

Sokolov also said he expected safety and efficiency gains from the next generation of nuclear reactors -- known as "pebble bed" plants, which use gas as a neutron moderator.

South Africa and China are both pushing development of the experimental technology, though neither have yet started construction of a commercial plant.

"This is our future," Sokolov said of the plants, after meeting Chinese and South Korean delegates at a conference.

Sokolov said the pebble bed reactor would increase the ratio of electrical output to thermal output to 50-60 percent, from 33-35 percent, and could make the use of uranium more efficient, extending the life of the fuel.