Uranium/Thorium as by-product from mining for other minerals

(last updated 21 Feb 2026)

Contents:

• Uranium as by-product from
  • Gold mining
  • Cobalt mining
  • Copper mining
  • Nickel mining
  • Tungsten mining
  • Niobium mining
  • Lithium mining
  • Rare earth elements (REE) mining
  • Phosphate mining
  • Other

• Thorium as by-product from
  • Rare earth elements (REE) mining

Uranium as by-product from

Gold mining

• Randfontein mine, South Africa
• Vaal River area mines, South Africa
• former mines in South Africa

• Recovery from gold tailings
  • Blyvooruitzicht tailings project (South Africa)
  • Buffelsfontein tailings project (South Africa)
  • Rand Uranium Co. tailings project (formerly Harmony tailings project) (South Africa)
  • Gold Fields' Witswatersrand tailings (South Africa)
  • East Rand tailings Joint Venture project (South Africa)
  • West Rand tailings project (South Africa)

Cobalt mining

• Kamoto mine, DR Congo

Copper mining

• Buckton, Alberta, Canada
• Radomiro Tomic mine, Chile
• Illicit artisanal mining at former Shinkolobwe mine, DR Congo
• Kamoto mine, DR Congo
• Uranium recovery project from Lumwana mine, Zambia
• Former Nkana mine in Kitwe, Zambia
• Rakha, Surda and Mosaboni, Jharkhand, India
• Milo IOCG/REE project, Queensland, Australia
• Olympic Dam mine, South Australia

Nickel mining

• Buckton, Alberta, Canada
• Uranium recovery project at Talvivaara Sotkamo mine, Finland

Tungsten mining

• Uranium recovery project in Ethiopia

Niobium mining

• Kanyika Niobium Project, Malawi

Lithium mining

• Falchani project, Peru

Rare earth elements (REE) mining

• Buckton, Alberta, Canada
• Sasktoon REE plant, Saskatchewan, Canada
• Eco Ridge project, Elliot Lake, Ontario, Canada
• Strange Lake, Québec, Canada
• Bokan Mountain project, Alaska, USA (plans for uranium recovery abandoned)
• Wheat Ridge processing plant, Colorado, USA
• White Mesa Mill, Utah, USA
• Round Top project, Texas, USA
• Kvanefjeld project, Greenland
• Häggån polymetal mine project, Jämtland, Sweden
• Nolans Bore project, Northern Territory, Australia
• Charley Creek Rare Earth Project, Northern Territory, Australia
• Milo IOCG/REE project, Queensland, Australia
• Donald REE project, Victoria, Australia
• Toliara Mineral Sand project, Madagascar

Phosphate mining

Other

• Narigan uranium-molybdenum mine project, Iran
• Gibellini vanadium mine and heap leach project, Nevada, USA
• Uranium to be extracted as byproduct of tunnel construction for Maglev train line in Japan?
• Häggån polymetal project, Jämtland, Sweden

Thorium as by-product from

Rare earth elements (REE) mining

• Fensfeltet REE project, Norway

HOME   WISE Uranium Project   >   Mining & Milling   >   Issues   >