New Uranium Mining Projects - Asia
(last updated 9 May 2008)
Contents:
In Armenia, uranium prospection and/or exploration is being performed by
Global Gold Corporation 
Russia enters uranium mining joint venture in Armenia
A joint venture established between Russia and Armenia plans to start uranium prospecting in the south of Armenia by late 2008, the venture's Russian participant said on April 22, 2008.
Atomredmetzoloto, which manages all Russian uranium-producing assets, and the Armenian Environmental Ministry, signed on April 22, 2008, in Yerevan an agreement on establishing a joint venture to prospect and mine uranium and other mineral resources on the territory of the South Caucasus state.
(RIA Novosti Apr. 22, 2008)
On Feb. 6, 2008, Russa and Armenia concluded an agreement on the establishment of a joint venture for the exploration and mining of uranium on Armenian territory. Russia plans to invest US$ 3 million into uranium exploration in Armenia in 2008.
(RIA Novosti Feb. 6, 2008)
An armenian-russian joint venture for the mining and milling of uranium ore on Armenian territory is to be founded in the first half of 2008, according to Armenian minister of environment Aram Arutjunjan. During the Soviet era, the Armenian uranium resources were estimated at 30,000 t.
(RIA Novosti Dec. 25, 2007)
Russia and Armenia have signed an agreement on geological exploration, extraction, and refining of uranium ore on the territory of the latter country. According to this agreement, the sides will form a joint venture on development and production of uranium in Armenia. They will also undertake necessary measures to prepare uranium deposits for uranium production.
(RBC Apr. 23, 2007)
Concern raised over proposed uranium mining at Nor Getik
> View The Greens Union of Armenia statement, May 17, 2006
In China, uranium prospection and/or exploration is being performed by
China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC),
Red Dragon Resources Corp. ,
Tibet Baoming Industry & Trade Ltd.
China's uranium demand to rise sixfold by 2020; imports needed
China's uranium demand for power generation will rise to 7,000 tons by 2020 from 1,000 tons, an official with the State Nuclear Power Agency said.
China will need to import uranium to help meet demand because domestic production won't be sufficient by 2020, Li Junjie, director of the uranium material department under the agency, said at an industry conference in Beijing.
In addition to purchasing directly from foreign uranium producers, the government encourages Chinese companies to invest and develop uranium reserves overseas, he said without elaborating.
(Dow Jones Nov. 14, 2007)
China says domestic uranium deposits are sufficient by 2020 only
China has enough uranium reserves to develop its nuclear power industry by 2020, said Wang Zhongtang, a senior official with the State Environment Protection Administration.
A recent survey on 4.3 million square km of the country's territory indicated the annual exploitations of uranium will be able to meet demand in the years up to 2020, he said.
But the official admitted global market is necessary for the long-term development of China's nuclear power industry.
The country is talking with South Africa and Australia about related cooperation and developing new ways to improve the efficiency of uranium usage, said the official.
(People's Daily July 9, 2007)
China to set up strategic uranium reserve
China will build a strategic uranium reserve in the coming years as it pushes a plan for a massive expansion of its nuclear power industry by 2020, state press said on Apr. 17, 2007.
According to the plan, China will focus domestic uranium exploration in the Yili Basin in northwestern China's Xinjiang region and in the Ordos Basin in Inner Mongolia.
China will also seek uranium resources overseas, it said.
(AFP Apr. 18, 2007)
On May 17, 2007, Sparton Resources Inc. announced that China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) has agreed to purchase any uranium oxide produced from the coal ash leaching tests, as well as any future U3O8 production from the program.
On Dec. 19, 2006, Sparton Resources Inc. reported that it has identified a major supply of uraniferous coal ash in central Yunnan Province.
The local coal has a high ash content (approximately 20-30%) and the coal uranium content varies from about 20-315 parts per million (ppm) and averages about 65 ppm U (historical and current data). Both the bottom ash and fly ash samples tested by Sparton returned values varying from 123-142 ppm U.
Assuming an average U content of 125 ppm, the annual coal ash produced from the three power stations burning that coal contains about 390,000 pounds of U3O8 [150 t U]. At a uranium recovery rate of 70% (to be confirmed with planned leaching tests) 273,000 pounds of uranium oxide [105 t U] could be processed annually.
> See extra page!
Kusmayanto Kadiman, Indonesia's Minister for Research and Technology, says that with help from Australian officials and mining companies, Indonesia has identified its own uranium reserves in Kalimantan, which it hopes to exploit, with Australia's help.
(ABC Jan. 10, 2008)
Iran will inaugurate a new uranium ore processing plant in less than a year in Ardakan, central Iran, a top nuclear official said on April 9, 2008.
Hossein Faghihian, deputy head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran in charge of nuclear fuel, said the Ardakan Yellowcake Production Plant would open before the end of the current Iranian calendar year, which is March 20, 2009.
Faghihian said the new plant at Ardakan is to have a capacity to produce 70 tons of yellowcake a year.
(AP April 9, 2008)
"We will be able to extract uranium ore in the first half of 2006 from Saghand mine. More than 77 percent of the work has been accomplished," Ghasem Soleimani, the British-trained director of mining operations at the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, said at the Saghand mine on Sep 4, 2004. Soleimani said uranium could be extracted from the shafts as early as mid 2005 if the Iranian leadership wants things speeded up, but there was no suggestion that political leaders in Tehran want that to happen. (AP Sep 5, 2004)
Some information on the project was given by Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) Vice President for Nuclear Fuel Production M. Ghannadi-Maragheh at the WNA Annual Symposium 3-5 September 2003 in London:
The Saghand uranium mine project is situated 185 km north-east of the city of Yazd, covering an area of 20 hectares. The detail exploration, completed in 1994, was concentrated on two important anomalies called no. 1 and 2, resulting in a calculated reserve of 1.58 million metric tonnes of uranium ore, at an average grade of 533 ppm (0.0533% U). This corresponds to a total uranium contents of 842 metric tonnes of U.
The projected underground uranium mine will have two shafts 350 meters deep each.
Ores with grades above 300 ppm are to be sent to the uranium mill, while ores with grades between 100 and 300 ppm are to be exploited by heap leaching.
An uranium mill with an annual capacity of 120,000 metric tonnes of ore and an annual output of 50 metric tonnes of uranium is being built 35 km north of Ardakan city.
On Feb. 9, 2003, President Khatami said that Iran has adopted plans to exploit the uranium mines 200 km off Yazd in central Iran and set up plants in Isfahan and Kashan to extract uranium composites to provide fuel for generating electricity. (IRNA 9 Feb. 2003)
According to Reuters, the extraction of uranium has already started.
(The deposit in question presumably is located at Saghand. According to the IAEA/NEA 2002 Red Book, this deposit has Reasonably Assured Resources of only 491 tonnes U and Estimated Additional Resources (Cat. I) of 876 tonnes U, both in the $80 - 130/kg U recovery cost category, that is 3 - 5 times the current world market price of approx. $10/lb U3O8.)
Iran's nuclear chief Gholamreza Aghazadeh said on May 3, 2006, studies show there are considerable amounts of uranium ore at Bandar Abbas, mineable in open pits. According to first estimates, an annual production of 30 t of U3O8 seems to be possible, at lower mining cost than at Saghand. (AFP May 3, 2006)
According to intelligence information, Iraq is performing repair work at the Al Qaim uranium concentration plant, where it used to extract uranium before the 1991 Gulf War.
(dpa Feb 23, 2002 / Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung Feb 24, 2002)
Japanese government to subsidize overseas uranium exploration
The Natural Resources and Energy Agency will subsidize half the cost of uranium exploration to support private companies conducting geological surveys and other operations overseas, prompted by rising concerns about a possible shortage of the mineral due to surging energy demand worldwide.
"We want to secure concessions in large uranium deposits to improve the level of self-reliance in the nuclear fuel cycle," said the agency, which is under the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry.
For fiscal 2007, 1 billion yen [US$ 8.4 million] in subsidies will be provided via Japan Oil, Gas and Metals National Corp. to trading companies and power utility-affiliated companies that are exploring uranium deposits.
The funding aims at six to seven locations, including Australia, in addition to Canada and Kazakhstan, the agency said.
The agency said Japan is totally dependent on imported uranium to fuel its nuclear plants. But uranium from decommissioned nuclear weapons and from commercial inventories are likely to shrink as the United States resumed construction of new nuclear plants recently and as energy demand in India and China continue to surge.
(Japan Times Jan. 6, 2007)
Jordan planning to exploit uranium deposits
The Kingdom of Jordan is planning to exploit its uranium deposits to provide the raw material for nuclear reactor fuel and has already requested bids from three international companies to extract the uranium available in six areas.
In addition, uranium resources available in the country's phosphate deposits are a subject of negotiations with Canadian SNC-Lavalin International , Jordan Nuclear Energy Commission (JNEC) President Khalid Touqan said.
He estimated these uranium deposits at around 130,000 tonnes, with a mine to be constructed by the end of the year 2008 and start production by 2012.
(Jordan Times May 9, 2008)
France to get access to Jordan's uranium resources
Jordan is very close to signing a deal with France whereby the first gets a nuclear reactor in seven years while the latter gets access to uranium resources, an informed Jordanian government source said.
Remarks to this effect were quoted by Al-Arab Al-Yawm paper on April 13, 2008, and the source is said to have indicated the deal came after talks with two companies, a British and a French company, and the details of the deal signed with the French company would be announced at a later time.
According to the source, some USD 1.5 billion worth of uranium material would be extracted virtue of this deal, the bulk of which is to finance purchase of the peaceful-purpose nuclear reactor and the rest to go to the treasury.
(Kuwait News Agency Apr. 13, 2008)
Kazakhstan assists Jordan with development of uranium deposits
According to a protocol signed at the occasion of the 2nd Kazakh-Jordanian Intergovernmental Commission's sitting on trade-economic and cultural and humanitarian cooperation in Astana, cooperation in the sphere of development of uranium deposits in Jordan will be continued.
(Kazinform Aug. 8, 2007)
Jordan says it has the uranium needed for its nuclear program
Jordan said the country possessed the uranium needed to develop its newly announced nuclear energy program but cautioned that it still requires the necessary legislation and manpower to pursue the technology.
Jordan's energy czar Khaled al-Shraydeh told the official Petra news agency that the country is estimated to have 80,000 tons of uranium. He added that the country's phosphate reserves also contain some 100,000 tons of uranium.
(AP May 5, 2007)
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In South Korea, uranium prospection and/or exploration is being performed by
Oriental Minerals Inc. ,
Korea Resources Corporation
> View deposit info
Development of Yongchun uranium mine started
In September 2007, development of a uranium mine started at Yongchun, Songhak-ri in Hoiryeong. The works were interrupted in November 2007, though. Uranium production is expected to begin in the second half of 2008.
(DailyNK Dec. 12, 2007)
In Kyrgyzstan, uranium prospection and exploration is being performed by
Monaro Mining NL ,
Sinosteel Corp. ,
Eurasian Minerals Inc. ,
Linia Prava Central Asia Ltd,
Nimrodel Resources Ltd ,
Stans Energy Corp. ,
Greenwich Global Capital Inc. ,
Monitor Energy Ltd ,
Leopard Minerals plc ,
Tau Mining Ltd (UK),
Long Alpha Mining Company LLC,
Dynamite Resources Ltd ,
Contact Uranium Ltd
> View plant info
> see also: Zarechnoye project (Kazakhstan)
> View more recent issues
Kara Balta uranium mill for sale
A Russian asset-management group -- Renova Group member UralPlatina Holding -- has won a tender for the Kyrgyz state's majority stake in uranium processor Kara Balta Mining. (RFE/RL Feb. 22, 2007)
On Sep. 4, 2006, a new tender for the Kara Balta uranium mill was opened. It will be open until Oct. 2, 2006. (Kazakhstan Today Sep. 4, 2006)
The tender failed again. (Interfax Oct 9, 2006)
On Aug. 18, 2006, the Kyrgyz government announced a tender for a stake in the Kara-Baltinsk uranium mill, beginning August 28, 2006.
The Kyrgyz State Property Management Committee said 72.28% of the company's shares will be offered at an initial price of 155.424 million soms (about US$ 4 million). (RIA Novosti Aug. 18, 2006)
A tender on the sale of the state block of stock of the Kara Balta uranium processing and mining facility in Kyrgyzstan has failed. There have been no investors to apply for participation in the tender organised by the State Property Committee of Kyrgyzstan on August 28, 2006. It has been the third attempt to sell the enterprise (Itar-Tass, Aug. 29, 2006)
The Kyrgyz government announced its intention to conduct an international tender for the sale of the Kara Balta Mining Combine. Kara Balta controls a large hydrometallurgical facility near Bishkek. Annual uranium production of the facility was listed at 3600 tU per year. Most recently, the facility provided final processing for in-situ leach (ISL) slurries from mines in southern Kazakhstan and is reportedly involved in the Zarechnoye joint venture with Kazakhstan and Russia. According to a government spokesman, the processing facility - 72.28% state-owned - closed in 2004 due to "unstable raw material supplies from Kazakhstan". (WNA News Briefing 05.11, 22 Mar 2005)
The auction will be held on July 26, 2005. The initial price is 140.02 million Soms (US$ 3.4 million). (AKIPress July 2, 2005)
Kara Balta mill to process uranium-containing waste material from BNFL Springfields (UK)
The German company RWE Nukem GmbH has contracted the Kara Balta uranium mill to process 1750 tonnes of uranium-bearing material. The material contains natural uranium at a concentration of 3%. According to a Nukem speaker, the material originates from the decommissioning of a non-specified "West-European facility", not from Nukem's own operations. The residual material that will be left over from the uranium extraction will remain in Kyrgyzstan.
(AKIPress Feb. 24, 2004, RIAN Feb. 25, 2004, NUKEM Feb. 27, 2004)
On Feb. 26, 2004, Kyrgyzstan Prime Minister Nikolai Tanayev said the Kyrgyz government objects to bringing uranium waste from abroad into the country. "The government disapproves of the project. It will not allow the country to be turned into a uranium waste dump," Tanayev said. "First and foremost, Kyrgyzstan must solve the problem of uranium tailing storage facilities."
On Feb. 25, 2004, a number of non-governmental organizations made a joint statement opposing the waste import.
(Interfax Feb. 26, 2004)
An expert commission, composed of specialists, government members, and parliamentarians, has supported the processing of nuclear wastes from Germany at Kyrgyzstan's Kara-Balta mining combine.
The Kara-Balta mining combine and the German company RWE NUKEM GmbH in 2003 concluded a contract under which 1,700 used graphite crucibles containing no more than 5% of uranium would be processed and stored in Kyrgyzstan.
(Interfax Jul. 13, 2004)
According to an article in New Scientist (Sep. 25, 2004), the material in question comprises 1800 tons of radioactive material currently stored in 10,600 drums at the BNFL Springfields nuclear fuel plant near Preston in north-west England. The Kara-Balta mill - said to be one of the few plants capable of separating the uranium from the graphite - will recover 90 tons of reactor-grade uranium from the material, while the remaining 1710 tons will be disposed of in Kyrgyzstan.
(The Guardian, The Independent, AKIPress Sep. 23, 2004)
However, the Kyrgyz authorities have not agreed to the import of the uranium waste and have not even received a license application for it.
(IRIN Sep. 23, 2004)
The Kyrgyz government now has prohibited the import of the waste material in question. (AKIPress Sep. 29, 2004)
Kyrgyzstan ratifies IAEA non-proliferation regulations - Kara Balta mill to restart
The Kyrgyz parliament's ratification of IAEA non-proliferation regulations on the production and turnover of raw uranium will make it possible to resume uranium production at the Kara-Balta plant, which had been idle for one year.
Agreements have been signed on the supply of 400 tonnes of raw uranium from Kazakhstan in January. In total, the supply will make 1,700 tonnes in 2004.
Kyrgyzstan became a member of the IAEA in 2003.
(Interfax, Kabar Dec. 8, 2003)
In Mongolia, uranium prospection and exploration is being performed by Uranerz Energy Corporation ,
Bluerock Resources Ltd. ,
Denison Mines Corp., East Asia Minerals Corp. ,
Mega Uranium Ltd.,
UGL Enterprises Ltd. , Western Prospector Group Ltd.,
Erdene Gold Inc. ,
Red Hill Energy Inc. ,
Khan Resources Inc.,
Century City International Holdings Ltd ,
Chain Bright LLC ,
Solomon Resources Ltd ,
Tooroibandi Limited,
Uranium 308 Corp. ,
Polo Resources Ltd.
Russia-Mongolia uranium agreement signed
Russia and Mongolia have signed an agreement to cooperate in the production of Mongolian uranium. Prime minister Sanjaa Bayar also told journalists that his country is interested in building a nuclear power plant with Russian help.
According to reports, the agreement signed during a visit by Bayar to Moscow comprises a plan of joint actions whereby Russian specialists would assist in the uranium exploration, extraction and processing in Mongolia. OECD Nuclear Energy Agency and International Atomic Agency figures show Mongolia's 'reasonably assured' uranium resources are currently estimated at some 46,000 tonnes, but Sergei Kiryenko, head of Russian state nuclear corporation Rosatom, was upbeat about the possibility the country could have much more. "I think they are more than officially registered, over 100,000 tonnes," he said.
(WNN 11 Apr. 2008)
Russia, Mongolia to jointly prospect, produce, process uranium
"[Nuclear power agency] Rosatom and Mongolia's industry and trade ministry signed a protocol on development of cooperation in the field of geological prospecting, production and processing of uranium ores," Rosatom secretary Sergei Novikov said on April 13, 2007.
Rosatom head Sergei Kiriyenko held a meeting with Mongolian President Nambaryn Enkhbayar and held talks with the country's prime minister, Miegombyn Enkhbold, during which it was agreed to implement international projects in Russia and Mongolia.
(RIA Novosti, April 13, 2007)
> View deposit details
On Nov. 30, 2007, Western Prospector Group Ltd. announced that it has received a positive Preliminary Economic Assessment pertaining to its 100% owned Gurvanbulag uranium deposit located in Mongolia.
> View deposit details
On Aug. 15, 2007 Khan Resources Inc. announced that it has completed a Pre-Feasibility Study for its Dornod Uranium Project in north eastern Mongolia. The study assumes a uranium price of US$55 per lb U3O8, and a through-put of 3,500 tonnes per day over a 15.5 year mine life, which will give an average annual production rate of 2.9 million lbs U3O8 [1115 t U], at a cost of US$19.99 per lb U3O8 or US$49.21 per tonne of ore. The capital cost of the project is projected to be approximately US$283 million.
The Dornod project implementation schedule is conservatively estimated to be approximately 45 months from the start of the Feasibility Study to the start of plant production. The Feasibility Study is expected to commence in the Fall of 2007, ahead of the negotiations for an Investment Agreement with the Government of Mongolia.
"Mining has commenced at the Dornod uranium mine in Mongolia. The first heap leach pad has been constructed, additional mining equipment is being procured and the leach plant is being fabricated. Plans are progressing for the reopening of the underground mine. Production of yellowcake is projected for mid-1998, initially at an annualized rate of 800,000 pounds of U3O8 per year, rising to at least 2.6 million pounds of U3O8 per year when the underground is in full operation in 1999-2000." (World Wide Minerals, Jan. 7, 1998)
"World Wide Minerals Ltd. announced today that, pending the resolution of the Kazakhstan Government's obligations to WWS and a general strengthening of uranium prices, the Management Committee of Central Asian Uranium Company, Ltd. ("CAUC") has decided to place the Dornod Uranium Project on standby." (World Wide Minerals, Aug. 7, 1998)
Myanmar government intensifies exploration for uranium
The Myanmar government has stepped up its exploration for uranium in the country. Surveys and test mining are taking place at four sites, including in the ethnic Kachin and Shan states, a government official told Asia Times Online on condition of anonymity. At the time the original plans for a nuclear reactor were mooted, the government had reportedly discovered uranium deposits in five areas in central and northern Myanmar, according to official government statistics.
(Asia Times May 24, 2007)
Pakistan's government has prepared a $600 million extensive plan for exploring and mining uranium deposits in the country to fuel future nuclear power plants (NPPs).
Informed sources told Dawn that uranium deposits so far discovered in 'Siwalik rocks' in some parts of central Punjab were of low grade. However, by applying new mining technique, good quality uranium could be produced at a competitive rate with a view to progressively developing the uranium mining sector.
The mineral sector is required to produce 350 tons of yellow cake (U3O8) per year by 2015 for meeting one-third requirements of the planned NPPs.
The mining of uranium will be undertaken at three sites -- Bannu Basin, Suleman Range-3 and Suleman Range-4 in Dera Ghazi Khan -- to produce the required fuel for NPPs. Through these NPPs, the government wants to produce 8,800 MW of electricity by 2030.
(Dawn March 1, 2007)
On June 24, 2004, the Central Development Working Party (CDWP) of the Planning Commission has approved a uranium resources exploration project, which will cost Rs614.1 million (US$ 11 million). The project is "to ensure indigenous supply of uranium against abrupt suspension of such foreign supplies in the future".
(Dawn July 11, 2004)
> View deposit info
On Feb. 6, 2008, the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec), approved the uranium mining project Taunsa 2, Dera Ghazi Khan, worth Rs 2.386 billion (US$ 38.18 million) including foreign exchange component (FEC) of Rs 1.15 billion (US$ 18.4 million).
(Business Recorder Feb. 7, 2008)
> View deposit info
A new uranium field has been 'developed' in Tumman Leghari, South Punjab, by the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC), it is reported. (UI News Briefing 99.42)
In the Philippines, uranium prospection and exploration is being performed by
Macro Asia Corp. (application filed)
> See also Russia (European part)
Russia and South Korea consider uranium production Joint Venture
Russia and South Korea are considering setting up a joint venture on uranium production and developing services in the area of nuclear fuel cycle, a joint document said.
"The sides will cooperate to create the conditions for reliable deliveries of Russian uranium products and services in the nuclear fuel cycle sphere," the document, signed following a regular session of a bilateral intergovernmental commission, said.
The parties pledged to instruct the relevant agencies to consider establishing a joint enterprise for the storage of uranium products subject to further processing by South Korea.
(RIA Novosti Dec. 14, 2007)
Russia plans to invest 20 billion rubles in CIS uranium mining by 2020
Russia plans to invest more than 20 billion rubles (US$ 746 million) in uranium mining in the CIS in a bid to raise uranium imports to 8,000 tonnes annually.
"... we determined that by 2020 we will be able to meet our requirements [for uranium] only by bringing deposits abroad, primarily in the CIS, into production," said Vladimir Bavlov, deputy head of Russian Subsurface Resources Agency (Rosnedra).
(Interfax Oct. 27, 2006)
Russia to increase uranium production sixfold by 2020
Russia plans to pump $10 billion into expanding its uranium resource base over the next 10 years, part of a program to accelerate the country's nuclear energy output, top government officials said on Feb. 27, 2006.
Spearheaded by the Natural Resources Ministry and the Federal Atomic Energy Agency, the program would increase annual uranium production sixfold by 2020, ensuring ore supplies for existing and new nuclear stations.
If the government does not act, Russian stockpiles of the ore will dry up in less than a decade, said an official from the Federal Subsoil Resource Use Agency, part of the Natural Resources Ministry.
In 2005, the country's three uranium producers mined just 3,325 tons of ore, one-fifth of the amount Russia annually consumes to fuel nuclear power stations and to meet military needs and export obligations, Anatoly Ledovskikh, head of the agency, said.
To increase future supply, the government would double productionsa at dexdddisting uranium mines and start exploration at a number of fields in Siberia and Buryatia. It would also set up joint ventures with CIS partners.
According to the ministries' plan, Russia would mine 60 to 70 percent of its uranium needs by 2015, with a further 30 percent coming from joint ventures in CIS countries, Vladimir Bavlov, deputy head of the Federal Subsoil Resource Use Agency said.
(Moscow Times Feb. 28, 2006)
Russia to double uranium production by 2010
Russia wants to double uranium production from the current 2200-2500 tonnes to 4000-4500 tonnes by 2010. The production increase were mainly needed to meet increasing domestic demand, but export also would continue, according to the Russian Chemical Technology Institute. (AFP Nov. 28, 2000)
Chita Region's uranium deposits to be auctioned
The Russian Natural Resources Ministry's Federal Resource Management Agency announced bidding for the right to exploit the Zherlovskoye, the Pyatiletneye and the Argunskoye uranium deposits in Chita Region, Kommersant learnt. The region’s administration reported the auction would be held in early September 2005. It is for the first time in the last ten years that the state puts out uranium assets of the Eastern Siberia to tender. However, there would be virtually no competition for the deposits. State-owned TVEL corporation is considered the only candidate to exploit them.
(Kommersant Daily, June 09, 2005)
Mitsui & Co., Ltd. to participate in development of Yuzhnaya uranium mine in Russia
Mitsui & Co., Ltd. and Russian state company TENEX (TECHSNABEXPORT) signed an agreement on October 5th, 2006, to confirm that the two companies will carry out a joint feasibility study on an undeveloped uranium deposit at the Yuzhnaya site in the Aldan district of the Sakha Republic of the Russian Federation. Mitsui and Tenex have also agreed that Mitsui will obtain the exclusive right to negotiate with TENEX on participating in this project in the future.
The uranium reserve at the Yuzhnaya site is estimated to exceed 250,000 tU. This deposit is regarded as one of the largest in the world. TENEX has been exploring this deposit on its own, but for the final feasibility study, which will take about 1.5 years from now to reach an investment decision, TENEX invited Mitsui to be a partner and decided to proceed with the study jointly. Under the agreement, Mitsui will provide US$6 million to finance the feasibility study, and TENEX, as the operator, will conduct a technical survey and obtain domestic licenses.
Mitsui is entitled to acquire from TENEX about 25% of the shares of the project company which owns the interest in this deposit, if the project's feasibility is confirmed and both parties reach an agreement on commercial terms and conditions. If TENEX and Mitsui establish a joint venture company, Mitsui will be the first foreign company to obtain an uranium interest in Russia, and it will be involved in construction, production and marketing of uranium from the Yuzhnaya mine. The total construction cost of the mine is currently estimated to be US$245 million, and the target date for the commissioning of the mine and the first shipment is expected to take place in 2009, leading to the full production phase (1,000 tU per year, as U3O8) around 2015.
(Mitsui Oct. 6, 2006)
Elkonsky GOK, the enterprise that will develop the Elkon group of uranium deposits in Yakutia, has been registered in the internal Russian republic's Aldan district, an official at Yakutia's government told Interfax. The enterprise will be attached to OJSC Atomredmetzoloto, the state owned umbrella company for Russian uranium mining enterprises.
(Interfax Nov. 8, 2007)
Russia plans to start mining uranium at the Elkon deposit in the Yakutia region of north-eastern Russia in 2012-13, according to Sergey Kiriyenko, director of the Federal Atomic Energy Agency (Rosatom).
A total of 90 billion roubles ($3.6 billion) will be invested in the Elkon project, including 7.5 billion roubles ($300 million) from the federal budget. Kiriyenko said that some 5000 tonnes of uranium would be mined annually at the Elkon project.
(WNA Oct. 26, 2007)
Techsnabexport has won the right to develop 8 uranium deposits in the Elkon area of Yakutia. (Techsnabexport May 15, 2007)
Mining of the Elkon uranium deposit in Yakutia is to start in 2010, according to Techsnabexport director general Vladimir Smirnov. Five years later, full production of 5000 t/a is to be attained. Exploration of the deposit is completed, he said. Reserves are sufficient for a 70 year lifetime of the mine. Total resources are estimated at 600,000 t uranium.
(RIA Novosti Dec. 13, 2006)
A key part of the plans [to increase Russian uranium production] will be start of production at Elkonsky Gorst, a deposit in south Sakha [Yakutia], that has proven resources of 342,000 tons, Vladimir Bavlov, deputy head of the Federal Subsoil Resource Use Agency said.
"As of now, the infrastructure around Elkonsky Gorsk is in place. We expect it to mine annually 3,000 tons in 10 years, and 6,000 tons in 15 years," Bavlov said.
(Moscow Times Feb. 28, 2006)
Russia to open large uranium mines in South Yakutia
Officials of TVEL Corporation said the output of uranium in Russia "is to be guaranteed after 2010 by sinking new uranium mines". TVEL vice-president Golovinsky said "new large uranium-mining enterprises could be built on the basis of some large deposits in South Yakutia.
The first uranium from those mines is expected to be obtained by 2015," he added. True, Golovinsky noted, "these deposits, sufficient for fifty years to come, cannot be tapped without government support".
(Itar-Tass March 25, 2005)
The deposits in question are located in the Aldansky uranium ore district. The ores are situated at depths of more than 200-500 m; the most productive ore zones predominate at depths of more than 1 km. The average U grade is 0.1 - 0.15%; in addition, the ore contains between 1 ppm to several ppm gold. The resources comprise more than 200,000 t U and belong to the 80-130 $/kg U cost category.
Khiagda uranium ISL project obtains approval for capacity build-up
JSC Khiagda has obtained approval from the State Ecological Inspection to increase the uranium production capacity to 150 - 200 tonnes per year. Commissioning of the new equipment for the sorption-desorption process is planned for January 2007.
(TVEL July 11, 2006)
TVEL seeks funding for Khiagda ISL project
TVEL has applied to the Russian Economic Development and Trade Ministry for an allocation of 4.4 billion rubles [US$ 163 million] over four to five years from the Investment Fund to finance uranium mining at the Khiagda mine in Buryatia. The investment in Khiagda will total 5.8 billion rubles [US$ 214 million], of which TVEL will provide 1.4 billion rubles [US$ 52 million].
(Interfax May 30, 2006)
Russia plans to develop Khiagdinskoe uranium ISL project
The Khiagda mine, which together with the Dalur mines accounted for just 200 tons of ore in 2005, will be brought to 1,000 tons annual production capacity within a decade. (Moscow Times Feb. 28, 2006)
Plans to proceed with the development of the Khiagda in-situ leach (ISL) uranium deposit in the Vitim district of the Republic of Buryatia were announced by the Ministry of Atomic Energy (MINATOM). Production costs from the deposit will be around US$20 per kg U3O8 (US$7.70/lb U3O8), MINATOM estimates. Production of 1500 tonnes U (3.9 million lb U3O8) annually is expected to begin in 2005/2006. The Khiagda deposit contains an estimated 15,500 tonnes U (40 million pounds U3O8) at an average ore grade of 0.06% U3O8 (0.051% U). (WNA News Briefing 01.34, August 22, 2001)
The go-ahead for the mine has been given by Minatom. (WNA News Briefing 01.36, Sep 5, 2001)
Environment at risk from uranium ISL project in permafrost at Khiagdinskoe
> View translation of Molodezh' Buryatiya article, Sep 13, 2000
Khiagdinskoe pilot ISL test successful
A new commercial uranium mine is to be built in the autonomous republic of Buryat following a successful test excavation. More than three tonnes U3O8 were extracted from the Khiagdinskoe deposit using leaching technology. Production volume of Khiagdinskoe is expected to reach 1500 tonnes annually, with sufficient reserves to ensure 'at least 50 years of operation'. Mining at the deposit is expected to be twice as cheap than at Russia's only other uranium mine, at Krasnokamensk. (UI News Briefing 00.19, 9 May 2000)
The deposit is located 250 km east of Lake Baikal and 200 km north of Chita.
Russian nuclear fuel manufacturer TVEL said its subsidiary in the Urals is planning to double its annual uranium production to 640 metric tons by 2010.
The Dalur company, a TVEL subsidiary in the Kurgan Region, mines uranium using an "ecologically clean" underground well leaching technique. After increasing its production and energy capacity, the company, which was formed in 2001, produced 262 tons of uranium ore in 2006.
(RIA Novosti June 7, 2007)
The Dalur mine, which together with the Khiagda mine accounted for just 200 tons of ore in 2005, will be brought to 2,000 tons annual production capacity within a decade. (Moscow Times Feb. 28, 2006)
The Malyshev Ore company has received about US$30 million from
Minatom
to develop the Dalmatovkoye
uranium field using ISL technology. First stage commissioning is
currently under way and the field is expected to produce 10% of
Russian needs in 1998. (UI News Briefing 47/97) The deposit is
located 80 km east of Cheljabinsk in Zauralsky district in the Transurals, Western Siberia.
In view of the increased uranium market price, Tertiary Minerals PLC considers by-product recovery of the uranium contained in the ore of its Ghurayyah tantalum-niobium deposit in Saudi Arabia.
The company's scoping study for development of Ghurayyah considered mining at an initial rate of 1.5 million tonnes of ore per year. The uranium contents of this ore would be 466,000 lbs per year of U308 (179 t U) per year. Recoveries have yet to be estimated.
(Tertiary Minerals PLC April 19, 2006)
In Turkey, uranium prospection and/or exploration is being performed by
Aldridge Minerals Inc.
In Uzbekistan, uranium prospection and/or exploration is being performed by
Areva,
Navoi Mining and Milling Complex,
Uran Ltd ,
Korea Resources Corporation
South Korea signs deal with Uzbekistan for uranium deliveries
According to official Uzbek news agency UzA, the Uzbek and South Korean prime ministers have signed an agreement to ship Uzbek uranium ore concentrate to South Korea. According to South Korean news agency Yonhap, the deal envisages that South Korea directly imports from Uzbekistan 300 tons of uranium per year between 2010 and 2014, while South Korea so far buys Uzbek uranium indirectly from U.S. companies.
(Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty Sep. 25, 2006)
Japan and Uzbekistan sign agreement for development of uranium industry
Japan and Uzbekistan have signed an agreement aimed at financing the
development of the uranium industry in the central Asian country.
The agreement was signed between the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) and Uzbekistan's Ministry of Foreign Economic Relations, Investment and Trade. The Japan Atomic Industrial Forum said the agreement was aimed at "expanding support" to the Uzbek uranium industry.
(NucNet 20 Sep 2006)
Uzbekistan will start supplying low-enriched [???] uranium for Japanese power stations in 2007, according to Nikolai Kucherskii, the director of the state-owned Navoi mining complex. About 300 tons of low-enriched uranium will be exported in 2007 to Japan via trading company Itochu Corp. (AP Nov. 3, 2006)
Korea Resources forms uranium joint venture in Uzbekistan
Korea Resources Corporation together with Goskomgeologiya (State Committee of Geology) agreed on the creation of a joint venture for the industrial development of the Dzhantuar uranium deposit, located in the center section of the desert Kyzyl Kum (Navoiyskaya region) and containing 7,154 t U and 19,000 t vanadium.
(GAZETA.KZ 8 Sep 2006)
Cogéma quits Sugraly project?
Cogéma has quit from a project with Navoi Mining & Metallurgical Complex (NMMC) to develop the Sugraly uranium deposit (38,000 tU, 44,813 tonnes U3O8), according to Kabar news agency. NMMC will start the project alone in October 2001. (WNA News Briefing 01.33, August 15, 2001)
However, Cogema said that it did not 'opt out' of the project in mid-2001. It made a positive field investigation of the project in 1988, but subsequent discussions with the Combinat (Navoi) 'did not lead to an agreement' and Cogema has had 'no further involvement with the project since the end of 1999'. (WNA News Briefing 01.40, Oct. 3, 2001)
Cogéma conducts feasibility study for Sugraly deposit
Cogéma, together with Duzbek Navoi, is conducting a feasibility study for the eventual exploitation of the Sugraly deposit (Les Echos 15 Oct 1998).
The deposit had been exploited by underground and in-situ leach mining between 1977 and 1994.
India to assist Vietnam with uranium ore processing technology
Among eight cooperation agreements signed by India and Vietnam is a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Department of Atomic Energy of India and the Ministry of Science and Technology of Vietnam. The MOU envisages the study and evaluation of Uranium ore processing technology for Vietnamese uranium ores, among others.
(New Kerala July 6, 2007)
In Yemen, uranium prospection and/or exploration is being performed by
Cantex Mine Development Corp.
