Laramide to acquire New Mexico uranium projects

Laramide Resources Ltd is to acquire a portfolio of New Mexico uranium properties including the Church Rock and Crownpoint projects from Uranium Resources Inc (URI) for a total of $12.5 million under a letter of intent signed by the two companies.

The $12.5 million will include a combination of cash, shares, a promissory note, and an option for URI to acquire Laramide's La Sal project in Utah for $4 million. The consideration is to be paid over a three-year period from the anniversary of closing, expected to take place at the end of March 2016.

As well as the Church Rock and Crownpoint in-situ leach mining projects, the deal also includes nearby assets which Laramide described as having near-term development potential and "significant" mineral resources. URI already holds a licence from the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission for the production of uranium from some sections of the Church Rock project, and the regulator has also approved the construction of a central processing plant at Crownpoint.

Laramide president and CEO Marc Henderson said that the Church Rock and Crownpoint group of properties would be a "cornerstone asset" for the company's strategy. "Church Rock complements our flagship asset in Australia, Westmoreland, and our conventional hard rock projects in New Mexico and Utah, being a near term development asset," he said.

The announcement of the latest sale followed the closure of URI's merger with Anatolia Energy, bringing the Temrezli in situ leach uranium project in Turkey into the company's portfolio. URI said that the proceeds from the sale of the New Mexico properties to Laramide will assist in funding development of Temrezli, which it has previously said is expected to move into development during 2016. Work is already underway to relocate URI's Rosita processing plant from Texas to Turkey in preparation for operations there.

URI president and CEO Christopher Jones said the transaction made a "great deal of sense" for both companies.

Researched and written
by World Nuclear News