A shipment of about 1,000 tons of uranium moved out of northern Niger in recent months and is now stranded at a military airbase in the capital, Niamey, where it faces heightened security risks after an attack by Islamic State militants, the Financial Times reported.

The uranium, processed as “yellowcake,” was transported from the mines of Arlit after Niger’s ruling military junta seized the cache, which was once controlled by France’s state-owned nuclear group Orano. The junta has offered the yellowcake, estimated to be worth about $240 million, on international markets, the FT reported. 

Members of the ruling junta said they have opened discussions about a potential sale with multiple countries, including Russia, China, and the United States, but have yet to close a deal, according to the report. Orano has initiated legal proceedings to block any sale, and French officials have urged Niger not to move or sell the cargo. 

The existence of the yellowcake cache has not gone unnoticed by the terrorist groups that increasingly control parts of Niger, including Islamic State and JNIM, a regional affiliate of al Qaeda, the newspaper said. 

In January, ISIS attacked Niamey’s main international airport and a nearby military base. The uranium is currently housed in the latter facility, but Islamic State fighters did not stumble upon it despite the success of their attack, according to the Financial Times.

In a recent statement published via its weekly newspaper and cited by the FT, ISIS warned that Niger may not be so lucky next time. “They will make sure to find it,” the group said of its fighters. 

Read more at the Financial Times