Energy Fuels Announces Strategic Venture With Nanoscale Powders To Develop Innovative Rare Earth Metal-making Technology
Energy Fuels Inc. (NYSE American: UUUU) (TSX: EFR) (“Energy Fuels” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce the execution of a Memorandum of Understanding (“MOU”) with Nanoscale Powders LLC (“NSP”) for the development of a novel technology (the “Technology”) for the production of rare earth element (“REE”) metals (the “Project”). We believe this Technology, which was initially developed by NSP, and will be advanced by the Company and NSP working together, has the potential to revolutionize the rare earth metal making industry by reducing costs of production, reducing energy consumption, and significantly reducing greenhouse gas (“GHG”) emissions. Producing REE metals and alloys (“REE Metals”) is a key step in a fully integrated REE supply chain, after production of separated REE oxides (“REE Oxides”) and before the manufacture of neodymium iron boron (“NdFeB”) magnets used in electric vehicles (“EVs”), wind generation and other clean energy and advanced technologies.
Energy Fuels Overview
Uranium demonstrated that despite disruptions and even a global pandemic, it is still one of the best-performing commodities in the resource industry, according to leading strategists. With the current demand for the valuable mineral outreaching present supply, the world is seeing a bullish uranium market like never before.
The biggest uranium producers in Canada, Australia, Kazakhstan, and Namibia saw mine closures and production cuts in 2020, leading to a 13-million-pound decline but significantly higher prices for the mineral. With mining operations slowly coming back online, US and Western-centric uranium companies leverage a chance to get a head start on the international competition and bullish market conditions that are hard to ignore.
Energy Fuels Inc. (NYSE:UUUU) is the largest producer of uranium in the US, owns more US capacity, and holds the biggest in-ground uranium resource portfolio of any producer or near-producer.
Energy Fuels is the only uranium producer with both conventional production and In Situ Recovery (ISR) in the US. Its standalone White Mesa Mill is the only conventional uranium mill in the country and leverages early-mover advantages in current production, scalability, capacity and regional dominance. In 2019, the White Mesa Mill became the number one producer of vanadium in the US, with production levels reaching 1.9 million pounds at 99.7 percent high-purity vanadium. And, in 2021, the White Mesa Mill began commercial production of an intermediate rare earth product at a stage more advanced than any other US company.
The mill boasts strategic positioning near highly prospective conventional uranium projects owned by Energy Fuels and other miners. This portfolio includes the La Sal and Henry Mountain/Bullfrog projects in Utah, the Roca Honda project in New Mexico and the Sheep Mountain project in Wyoming. All projects host substantial uranium mineralization and mining-friendly conditions.
The company’s main short-term conventional operation is the Pinyon Plain mine in Arizona. This high-grade uranium production asset could become the lowest-cost uranium mine in the U.S., leveraging advanced stage positioning. The asset is currently licensed, developed and being held on stand-by and well maintained by Energy Fuels in preparation for improving markets.
Additionally, Energy Fuels has two high-quality licensed and developed ISR production operations in its robust asset portfolio. The Alta Mesa ISR project in Texas hosts significant resources and exploration potential across 200,000 acres and the Nichols Ranch ISR project in Wyoming leverages 34 licensed wellfields, which advantageously benefits its long-term production profile. Both projects are on standby in anticipation of improving market conditions.
Energy Fuels offers excellent leverage to rising uranium prices and is well-positioned to capitalize on the growing need for additional domestic and global uranium supplies. The company also expects to earn additional revenues through third-party recycling and toll processing, production of other valuable minerals (including rare earths and vanadium), and other business opportunities at its White Mesa Mill.
In 2021, the company added Rare Earth Elements (REE) to its robust portfolio of critical metal production in efforts to transform the company into “America’s Critical Mineral Hub,” as described by Energy Fuels president and CEO Mark S. Chalmers. The future plans for the company include focusing on significant uranium production at the White Mesa Mill while also developing a complementary, fully integrated REE business.
“While we are obviously extremely excited about the potential for rare earths, our core business remains uranium production, and by almost any metric, including a successful track record of past and current uranium production, experience in both ISR and conventional uranium mining, existing licensed and constructed processing capacity, U.S.-origin inventory, recycling capabilities, and the like, Energy Fuels is clearly the leading U.S. uranium company as well. We are particularly excited by actions the Biden Administration is taking to address climate change and support nuclear energy,” commented Chalmers.
Energy Fuels Inc. has an impressive management team consisting of resource development, finance and M&A heavyweights. With over a century of combined experience in related fields, this leadership primes the company for economic success and exciting uranium production expansion.
Energy Fuels’ Company Highlights
Energy Fuels is the largest uranium producer in the US.
The company is entering commercial production of an intermediate rare earth product in 2021, with plans to install fully integrated rare earth capabilities in the coming years.
The company became the only primary vanadium producer in North America in 2019 with its White Mesa Mill.
The White Mesa Mill in Utah is the only conventional uranium and vanadium mill operating in the US. It leverages an impressive annual capacity of over 8 million pounds of uranium.
The Nichols Ranch ISR project is an existing ISR facility in Wyoming, licensed to produce two million pounds of uranium per annum.
The Alta Mesa ISR project is a significant existing ISR production on standby in Texas with 1.5 million pounds of annual capacity.
The company operates significant future scalability potential with three large-scale uranium projects containing over 50 million pounds of combined measured and indicated resources at the Sheep Mountain (fully-permitted), Roca Honda (advanced-stage permitting) and Bullfrog projects (pre-permitting stage).
The company executes its alliance with RadTran to evaluate the recovery of thorium and radium from its existing rare earth carbonate and uranium process streams for use in the production of medical isotopes for emerging targeted alpha therapy cancer therapeutics.
International Consolidated Uranium Inc. entered into a definitive asset purchase agreement with certain wholly-owned subsidiaries of Energy Fuels to acquire a portfolio of conventional uranium projects located in Utah and Colorado.
Energy Fuels’ Key Projects
White Mesa Mill
The White Mesa Mill is strategically located in southeast Utah, central to high grade uranium and vanadium mines in the United States. The mill is the only fully licensed and operating conventional uranium mill in the United States and operates extensive controls to ensure air, water, wildlife and environmental sustainability. The White Mesa Mill just began production of an intermediate rare earth product (mixed rare earth carbonate) and also has the capability of producing a high-purity vanadium product.
Since 2013, the mill has produced over six million pounds of uranium, reaching highs of 917,000 pounds of uranium in 2018. The asset has a licensed capacity to produce over eight million pounds of uranium per year. Although the mill has an ideal positioning to generate revenue through third-party toll milling, recycling low-cost alternate feed materials and participating in the cleanup of historic uranium mines in the region.
White Mesa Mill provides the company with a multitude of business opportunities, including the production of uranium, rare earths and vanadium. The mill gives Energy Fuels an early-mover domination in the uranium space as one of only two operating conventional uranium mills in North America.
Alta Mesa ISR Mine & Plant
The flagship Alta Mesa ISR Mine & Plant, located in South Texas, is a proven low-cost uranium producer, well-known within the US nuclear industry. The project is a fully licensed and constructed ISR asset that sits on over 200,000 acres of private land. Energy Fuels owns 100 percent of the project.
Between 2005 and 2013, the facility produced about 4.6 million pounds of uranium, including over one million pounds in two of those years. Its total operating capacity stands at 1.5 pounds of uranium per year. Additionally, the current measured and indicated mineral resources report 3.6 million pounds of uranium at averaged grades of 0.111 percent uranium with 16.8 million pounds of inferred mineral resources at average grades of 0.121 percent uranium. The large private land position contains highly prospective ground for future exploration and resource expansion.
Energy Fuels currently has Alta Mesa in a state of readiness and maintenance to resume production following market conditions.
Nichols Ranch ISR Project
The Nichols Ranch ISR project is located in the prolific Powder River Basin of Wyoming. Energy Fuels acquired this key production asset in 2015 through its acquisition of Uranerz Energy Corporation.
In 2017, Energy Fuels produced about 366,000 pounds of uranium at Nichols Ranch and produced over 140,000 pounds of uranium the year later. The company currently has an additional 34 wellfields permitted for future production as market conditions warrant, ensuring a long-term production profile.
The following steps for Nichols Ranch include increasing its production and advancing yield potential from the facility’s current licensed capacity of two million pounds of uranium per year. The project hosts significant expansion potential and has extensive controls in place to ensure environmental and wildlife protection.
Pinyon Plain Mine
The Pinyon Plain mine in Arizona is a licensed and substantially developed uranium mine that hosts the highest grade permitted mineralization in the US. The mine is currently on standby awaiting improved prices, and its surface infrastructure and production shaft are completed. Energy Fuels owns 100 percent of the asset.
The mine hosts measured and indicated uranium resources at 2.43 million pounds at average grades of 0.88 percent uranium. The company intends to ship ore produced from the mine to its White Mesa Mill for processing. Pinyon Plain also has the potential to become a significant copper producer with measured and indicated copper resources of 11.94 million pounds at average grades of 5.93 percent copper.
The asset could become the lowest-cost uranium mine in the U.S. The asset currently is on stand-by.
Henry Mountains Complex
The Henry Mountains complex is a contiguous group of uranium properties, including the Tony M and Southwest deposit and the Copper Bench and the Indian Bench (Bullfrog) deposits in Utah. Its NI 43-101 technical report shows approximately 2.5 million tons of indicated resources with an average grade of 0.27 percent uranium and approximately 1.61 million tons of inferred resources with an average grade of 0.25 percent uranium.
The fully-permitted and developed Tony M portion of the Henry Mountains complex is currently on standby, with the high-grade Bullfrog deposit preparing for permitting. Energy Fuels estimates Henry Mountain could produce up to 1.5 million pounds of uranium per year as a strategic asset near the company’s White Mesa Mill.
La Sal Complex
The La Sal complex is a fully permitted and developed series of mines, including four uranium and vanadium mines (La Sal, Beaver, Energy Queen and Pandora) connected by an extensive network of underground workings. The complex is located in the La Sal mining district, Utah along the La Sal trend, which runs east to west for about 20 miles. Energy Fuels owns 100 percent of La Sal.
Past exploration on the asset includes production in early 2013 and test mining in 2019, revealing high-grade uranium and vanadium. La Sal hosts measured and indicated mineral resources hovering 4.1 million pounds of uranium and 21.5 million pounds of vanadium at average grades of 0.18 percent uranium and 0.94 percent vanadium.
Moving forward, Energy Fuels plans to continue with its readiness activities and expects to complete a surface and underground drilling program at the La Sal complex to potentially expand the known uranium and vanadium resources in a future resource report.
Sheep Mountain Project
The Sheep Mountain project is a fully-permitted conventional uranium mine located approximately eight miles south of Jeffrey City, Wyoming, on a land package totaling 4,475 acres. The project includes the Congo pit, a proposed open-pit development and the existing Sheep Mountain underground mine.
The Sheep Mountain mine is a formerly producing conventional uranium mine with the potential to become a long-term uranium production center at higher uranium prices. The project has a resource estimate of approximately 12.9 million tons of measured and indicated resources at an average grade of 0.12 percent uranium, including 18.4 million pounds of reserves.
Energy Fuels has already strategically acquired its final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and Record of Decision (ROD) for the Sheep Mountain project, which was the last major government approval required to begin mining at this site. Energy Fuels plans to redevelop Sheep Mountain using conventional underground and open-pit mining methods with uranium produced in a new heap leach extraction process. The pre-feasibility study estimates Sheep Mountain can produce up to 1.5 million pounds of uranium annually over its 15-year lifespan.
Roca Honda
The Roca Honda project is located in northwest New Mexico within trucking distance of Energy Fuels’ White Mesa mill. Honda is one of the largest and highest-grade development-stage uranium projects in the US. Energy Fuels owns 100 percent of the project.
The project hosts 1.51 million tons of measured and indicated resources, with an average grade of 0.48 percent uranium containing 14.56 million pounds of uranium and an additional 1.20 million tons of inferred mineral resources with an average grade of 0.47 percent uranium containing 11.21 million pounds of uranium. Roca Honda has strategic positioning adjacent to General Atomics’ Mount Taylor mine and could see similarly successful yield as its geographic neighbor.
Energy Fuels is currently working towards advanced stages of permitting for Roca Honda and could see up to 2.7 million pounds of annual uranium production for the project over a nine-year mine life.
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