Although Australia uses no nuclear power, it is the world's third-ranking uranium producer behind Kazakhstan and Canada, exporting some 9,600 tonnes of oxide concentrate annually worth over 1.1 billion dollars (1.09 billion US).

It also holds the world's largest reserves of uranium -- the most widely used nuclear fuel -- with 23 percent of the total, according to the World Nuclear Association.

Perception of the nuclear industry has been seriously hurt since the Fukushima No. 1 plant in Japan was crippled eight days ago by a terrifying earthquake and tsunami.

The twin disasters knocked out the plant's cooling systems, sparking a series of explosions and fires. Authorities have struggled to keep fuel rods inside reactors and fuel storage containment pools under water to prevent a major radiation leak.

But Gillard said the crisis would not affect Australian uranium sales.

"What is happening in Japan doesn't have any impact on my thinking about uranium exports," she told Sky News.

"We do export uranium and we will continue to export uranium.

"Countries around the world will make their own choices about how they source their energy."

Japan is an important customer of Australia, as is China, which last week ordered safety inspections of its nuclear plants and suspended approval of new projects.

China currently operates 13 nuclear plants and is building more than two dozen others -- estimated at 40 percent of all plants being built worldwide.

Other major markets for Australian uranium oxide include the United States and the European Union.

Shares in Australia's top uranium companies have been dumped heavily since the crisis unfolded, with the Rio Tinto majority-owned Energy Resources of Australia Ltd down 14.89 percent last week.

Africa-focused Paladin Energy Ltd fared even worse, crashing 23.89 percent, while Extract Resources Ltd plunged 34.15 percent for the week.

Adding to the weak sentiment was the withdrawal by a subsidiary of Russia's nuclear energy agency of its 1.16 billion US dollar offer for Australia's Mantra Resources.

The Russian Federal Atomic Agency's ARMZ uranium producer said in a statement that the Japanese nuclear crisis fundamentally altered the Australian company's long-term value.

But senior executives at Australia's top uranium companies insist the industry is resilient and will continue to grow.

Paladin chief executive John Borshoff said the sell-off was an over-reaction.

"If you look at it in context, it is an industry that sits far ahead of any other in terms of safety and it has achieved that record since only starting virtually in 1970," he told the ABC's Inside Business on Sunday.

"There's this phobia about nuclear, that when anything happens it generates a reaction like nothing else.

"The investors are not quite understanding that the nuclear industry will survive. The industry will learn and become even safer.

"If you think Japan is going to give up nuclear, then I don't know what is going to replace that."

Australian Uranium Association chief executive Michael Angwin said the market reaction was predictable, but the industry would survive.

"The factors which were driving the demand for Australia's uranium and the demand for nuclear power last Friday are still the same today," he said.

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