LAKEWOOD, CO, Sept. 27, 2018 /PRNewswire/ - Energy Fuels
Inc. (NYSE American: UUUU; TSX: EFR) ("Energy Fuels" or the
"Company") is pleased to announce that the Company expects to
resume vanadium production at its 100% owned White Mesa Mill (the
"Mill") in mid-November 2018,
producing significant quantities of salable
V2O5 product by the end of December 2018. When production begins, Energy
Fuels will be the newest vanadium producer in the World and the
only primary producer of V2O5 in North America. In addition, the Company is
currently preparing to conduct a test-mining program that
selectively targets high-grade V2O5 resources
at its 100%-owned La Sal Complex of uranium/vanadium mines in
Utah, with the goal of
significantly increasing productivity and mined grades and reducing
mining costs per pound of V2O5 and
U3O8 recovered.
Energy Fuels' White Mesa Mill, located near Blanding, Utah, is currently the only facility
in the United States capable of
processing conventional mined vanadium resources. As a result, no
other company in the United States
is likely to enter primary vanadium production in the near-term,
because no other company has access to the Mill at this time.
Vanadium prices have risen by over 150% in the past year due to
a number of factors, including production cuts and significant
increases in demand due to the implementation on November 1, 2018 of new rebar standards in
China that can only be achieved
through increased use of vanadium (with limited substitution). In
addition, vanadium demand could increase significantly in the
coming years due to the commercialization of vanadium batteries
used in connection with renewable energy generation. As of
September 23, 2018, the mid-point
price of V2O5 as reported by Metal Bulletin
was $22.63 per pound, as compared to
$9.00 per pound on September 29, 2017.
As previously announced, and starting in November 2018, Energy Fuels expects to begin
vanadium production from the pond solutions at the White Mesa Mill,
which the Company estimates contain approximately four (4) million
pounds of recoverable V2O5. Historically, the
Mill has been a significant producer of vanadium, and the Company
estimates that the Mill has produced about 45 million pounds of
V2O5 since it was constructed in the
early-1980's, having last produced over 1.5 million pounds of
V2O5 mined from the La Sal Complex in 2013
(see further update below on the La Sal Complex). The Company has
spent the past several months retrofitting and upgrading the Mill's
vanadium recovery circuit in preparation of this upcoming
production run. Once production reaches a steady state, the Company
expects to produce approximately 200,000 to 225,000 pounds of
V2O5 per month from the pond solutions for a
period of 16 to 20 months, subject to market conditions, costs, and
recoveries. Further, the Mill has historically produced a
relatively high-purity vanadium product, which if achieved again,
offers the potential in today's market to command a premium above
standard V2O5 prices. The pond project also
offers the Company excellent flexibility, including the ability to
turn production on-and-off quickly and at limited cost, in response
to evolving market conditions. While the Mill has never to date
attempted to commercially recover vanadium dissolved in the ponds,
extensive on-site test work indicates that the project has a high
probability for success.
In addition, Energy Fuels is commencing limited conventional
vanadium production at its 100% owned and fully licensed,
permitted, and constructed La Sal Complex of uranium/vanadium mines
in Utah. In Q4 2008, the Company
expects to begin a test-mining program to evaluate different
approaches that selectively target high-grade vanadium zones,
thereby potentially increasing productivity and mined grades for
vanadium and decreasing mining costs per pound of
V2O5 and U3O8
recovered. The Company also expects to conduct additional
exploration and in-fill drilling at the La Sal Complex, with
specific analysis for vanadium, which was not normally done in the
past, with the goal of expanding and upgrading the vanadium
resources at this project.
In preparation for this test-mining program, the Company has
already completed significant surface and underground refurbishment
at the La Sal Complex, and has re-established services in areas of
the mine complex with the greatest potential to hold high-grade
vanadium resources. The Company expects to commence the test-mining
program during Q4-2018, which is expected to take approximately six
(6) months to complete. If the program is successful and vanadium
prices remain strong, the Company may continue mining beyond the
planned campaign.
Historically, the uranium/vanadium mines in the La Sal and Uravan Mineral Districts were mined
using then-available technologies and production methods that
focused mainly on recovering the uranium resources. The ore at the
La Sal Complex contained vanadium at a historic ratio of roughly
1:5 (the vanadium concentration five times higher than the uranium
concentration). However, the actual vanadium content was only
ultimately known following milling. The Company is actively
investigating above-average grade vanadium areas of mineralization
that were not mined in the past due to lower uranium content. The
Company plans to introduce real-time portable XRF technology to
better define areas containing high-grade vanadium resources. The
test-mining program announced today is expected to produce
approximately 5,000 tons of mineralized material, which would be
further tested and analyzed at the White Mesa Mill. The Company
believes this new approach has the potential to significantly lower
mining costs at the La Sal Complex by selectively targeting the
high-grade vanadium and potentially past un-mined resources. Any
new mining approaches developed in this program may also be
applicable to the Company's other permitted and standby
uranium/vanadium mines in the region, including the Whirlwind and
Rim mines.
Finally, the Company expects to use data gathered from the
test-mining program, along with additional vanadium/uranium focused
drilling at the La Sal Complex, to potentially expand and upgrade
the vanadium resources at this project. According to the current
March 25, 2014 technical report
prepared in accordance with National Instrument 43-101 –
Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101"),
the La Sal Complex contains approximately 1.14 million tons of
Measured and Indicated Mineral Resources with an average grade of
0.94% V2O5, containing approximately 21.5
million pounds of V2O5, along with 0.19
million tons of Inferred Mineral Resources with an average grade of
0.51% V2O5, containing approximately 1.9
million pounds of V2O5.
Mark S. Chalmers, President and
CEO of Energy Fuels stated: "When Energy Fuels commences vanadium
production in November, we will be the only primary producer of
V2O5 in North
America. This position brings the potential for Energy Fuels
to generate significant cash flow in today's strong vanadium price
environment, especially with the steel industry recovering in the
U.S. Further, because we own and control 100% of the only operating
conventional vanadium mill in North
America, no other company in the region can currently
produce vanadium, unless Energy Fuels provides access to the
facility, and currently there are no outstanding commitments. This
places Energy Fuels in a truly unique position to potentially
realize significant cash flows from our vanadium assets in today's
tight resource market.
"We believe the commencement of vanadium production from the
ponds at the White Mesa Mill is well timed in today's strong
vanadium market. And, over the longer-term, we are hopeful that
today's real-time mining technologies will provide for a possible
paradigm shift that has the potential to improve the economics of
future vanadium and uranium mining in this well-known and prolific
high-grade district."
John H. White, P.E., Vice President, Technical Services of
Energy Fuels Resources (USA)
Inc., is a Qualified Person as defined by Canadian
National Instrument 43-101 and has reviewed and approved the
technical disclosure contained in this news release.
About Energy Fuels: Energy Fuels is a leading
integrated US-based uranium mining company, supplying
U3O8 to major nuclear utilities. Its
corporate offices are in Denver,
Colorado, and all of its assets and employees are in the
western United States. Energy
Fuels holds three of America's key uranium production centers, the
White Mesa Mill in Utah, the
Nichols Ranch Processing Facility in Wyoming, and the Alta Mesa Project in
Texas. The White Mesa Mill is the
only conventional uranium mill operating in the U.S. today and has
a licensed capacity of over 8 million pounds of
U3O8 per year. The Nichols Ranch Processing
Facility is an ISR production center with a licensed capacity of 2
million pounds of U3O8 per year. Alta Mesa is an ISR production center currently
on care and maintenance. Energy Fuels also has the largest NI
43-101 compliant uranium resource portfolio in the U.S. among
producers, and uranium mining projects located in a number of
Western U.S. states, including one producing ISR project, mines on
standby, and mineral properties in various stages of permitting and
development. The Company also produces vanadium as a by-product of
its uranium production from certain of its mines on the Colorado
Plateau, as market conditions warrant. The primary trading market
for Energy Fuels' common shares is the NYSE American under the
trading symbol "UUUU", and the Company's common shares are also
listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the trading symbol
"EFR". Energy Fuels' website is www.energyfuels.com.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking
Statements: Certain information contained in this news
release, including any information relating to: the Company being a
leading producer of uranium and vanadium in the U.S.; any
expectations to resume vanadium production at the Mill; any
expectations relating to expected vanadium recoveries from the Mill
pond and cash flows; any expectations relating to the purity of any
recovered vanadium from the Mill ponds and any potential for
premiums; any expectations relating to the flexibility to turn
vanadium production from the Mill ponds on or off quickly in the
future; any expectations to begin a test-mining program at the
Company's La Sal Complex; any expectations relating to potential
increases in productivity and mined grades for vanadium and
decreases in mining costs at the La Sal Complex; any expectations
to conduct additional exploration and in-fill drilling at the La
Sal Complex and to expand and upgrade the resources at the project;
any expectations to potentially continue mining at the La Sal
Complex beyond the planned campaign; any expectations regarding the
market for vanadium and future vanadium prices; and any
other statements regarding Energy Fuels' future expectations,
beliefs, goals or prospects; constitute forward-looking information
within the meaning of applicable securities legislation
(collectively, "forward-looking statements"). All statements in
this news release that are not statements of historical fact
(including statements containing the words "expects", "does not
expect", "plans", "anticipates", "does not anticipate", "believes",
"intends", "estimates", "projects", "potential", "scheduled",
"forecast", "budget" and similar expressions) should be considered
forward-looking statements. All such forward-looking statements are
subject to important risk factors and uncertainties, many of which
are beyond Energy Fuels' ability to control or predict. A number of
important factors could cause actual results or events to differ
materially from those indicated or implied by such forward-looking
statements, including without limitation factors relating to: the
Company being a leading producer of uranium and vanadium in the
U.S.; any expectations to resume vanadium production at the
Mill; any expectations relating to expected vanadium recoveries
from the Mill pond and cash flows; any expectations relating to the
purity of any recovered vanadium from the Mill ponds and any
potential for premiums; any expectations relating to the
flexibility to turn vanadium production from the Mill ponds on or
off quickly in the future; any expectations to begin a test-mining
program at the Company's La Sal Complex; any expectations relating
to potential increases in productivity and mined grades for
vanadium and decreases in mining costs at the La Sal Complex; any
expectations to conduct additional exploration and in-fill drilling
at the La Sal Complex and to expand and upgrade the resources at
the project; any expectations to potentially continue mining at the
La Sal Complex beyond the planned campaign; any expectations
regarding the market for vanadium and future vanadium prices;
and other risk factors as described in Energy Fuels' most recent
annual report on Form 10-K and quarterly financial reports.
Energy Fuels assumes no obligation to update the information in
this communication, except as otherwise required by law. Additional
information identifying risks and uncertainties is contained in
Energy Fuels' filings with the various securities commissions which
are available online at www.sec.gov and www.sedar.com.
Forward-looking statements are provided for the purpose of
providing information about the current expectations, beliefs and
plans of the management of Energy Fuels relating to the future.
Readers are cautioned that such statements may not be appropriate
for other purposes. Readers are also cautioned not to place undue
reliance on these forward-looking statements, that speak only as of
the date hereof.
Cautionary note to United
States investors concerning estimates of measured, indicated
and inferred resources. This news
release contains certain disclosure that has been prepared in
accordance with the requirements of Canadian securities laws, which
differ from the requirements of U.S. securities
laws. Unless otherwise indicated, all reserve
and resource estimates included in this news release have been
prepared in accordance with NI 43-101 and the Canadian Institute of
Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum ("CIM") classification
system. Canadian standards, including NI
43-101, differ significantly from the requirements of U.S.
securities laws, and reserve and resource information contained in
this news release may not be comparable to similar information
disclosed by companies reporting only under U.S.
standards. In particular, the term "resource"
does not equate to the term "reserve" under SEC Industry Guide
7. United
States investors are cautioned not to assume that all or any
of Measured or Indicated Mineral Resources will ever be converted
into mineral reserves. Investors
are cautioned not to assume that all or any part of an "Inferred
Mineral Resource" exists or is economically or legally
minable. Energy Fuels does not
hold any Reserves as that term is defined by SEC Industry Guide
7. Please refer to the section
entitled "Cautionary Note to United States Investors Concerning
Disclosure of Mineral Resources" in the Company's most recently
filed Annual Report on Form 10-K for further details.
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SOURCE Energy Fuels Inc.