Australian uranium companies further down the drain
Oz Minerals pulls out of Toro uranium JV,9 News, 19 Nov 11 OZ Minerals has pulled out of a uranium exploration joint venture with Toro Energy in South Australia, saying no economic uranium has yet been found at the Mt Woods project.
The Toro board has accepted a $3.75 million cash offer from OZ Minerals as consideration for the termination, Toro said in astatement on Friday. ”No potentially economic uranium results have been reported from the Mt Woods project,” Toro said…. Shares in Toro were down 3.41 per cent at 8.5 cents at 1540 AEDT while OZ Mineral shares were 1.89 per cent weaker, compared to losses in the broader market of about 1.8 per cent.
http://finance.ninemsn.com.au/newsbusiness/aap/8376270/oz-minerals-pulls-out-of-toro-uranium-jv
Opposition to uranium mining in India
| Minister opposes uranium mining | |
| Deccan Herald, Bangalore, Nov 16, DHNS: | |
| Yadgir district in-charge minister Raju Gouda on Wednesday said he would appeal to Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda to cancel the permission granted to the Uranium Corporation of India Limited (UCIL) to take up uranium mining in Gogi village of Yadgir district. | |
| Addressing the media, Gouda said he would take a delegation to meet the chief minister on Thursday, and submit a memo- randum urging the government to drop the project as it would pose serious health hazards to the people of the region.
The minister said the project was not only hazardous to human beings but would also adversely impact the environment and the wildlife, and fertile land in the radius of over 100 km in and around the project would turn barren. The government has agreed to allot about 102 hectares of land to UCIL for taking up mining activities in Gogi, where rich deposits of Uranium have been found. UCIL had already dug up a 273-metre deep tunnel. The effluents generated are being discharged into a nearby water body, which was a water source for the people. Both humans and cattle have been taking ill after consuming this water, he said. .. |
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Uranium mining industry now facing a gloomy future
Canada’s Cameco, the world’s biggest uranium miner by market value, has seen its share price tumble 48 per cent since the beginning of March.
A drop in supply may also be met by a drop in demand, according to UxC. “The reduction in uranium demand will extend to the longer term as some of the reactors taken offline will be permanently shut down,” it says in its report. “In addition, other new reactors under construction or planned will likely be delayed, leading to a further reduction in demand.”….
Uranium miners hamstrung by price and demand By William MacNamara, FT.com November 16, 2011 The uranium industry, suppliers of the fuel that powers nuclear plants, is processing a few hard numbers.
These start with the benchmark spot price for uranium. Since the Fukushima disaster in March, when the price was hovering about $70 per pound, uranium has fallen to a range of $50-$55 per pound. The costs of extracting uranium are rising, and lower prices are affecting producers’ profitability and plans to invest in future supply. Continue reading
Obama sets uranium policy for Australia as he flips by
Gillard uranium move linked to US: report, Business Spectator, 16 Nov 2011 Prime Minister Julia Gillard’s move to open the door to uranium exports to India reportedly follows talks with the Obama administration. The US has been pursuing a closer partnership with India and considers Australia a key part of its strategy, The Australian reported on Wednesday.
Ms Gillard has denied that the decision was made to coincide with President Barack Obama’s visit to Australia and said it was her decision alone.The Australian, however, reported that US and Australian officials have been in intense strategic discussions about India for several months. http://www.businessspectator.com.au/bs.nsf/Article/Gillard-uranium-move-linked-to-US-report-NMLD2?OpenDocument&src=hp3
India can thank Uncle Sam for Julia Gillard’s uranium backflip, First Post India, 16 Nov 11 Uttara Choudhury New York: Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard’s dramatic decision to open the door to uranium exports to India came after talks with the Obama administration, which viewed the ban as a “fly in the ointment” to greater engagement between Washington, New Delhi and Australia in the Indian Ocean region…….
Gillard announced on Tuesday that she will ask the Australian Labour Party to dump its ban on uranium sales to India, at its national conference next month. The ban was imposed by former prime minister Kevin Rudd in 2008 as India wasn’t a signatory to the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty. Gillard has denied her decision to seek to overturn the ban is in order to fall in line with the US. She bristled when questioned on the timing of the announcement which coincided with Obama’s state visit to Australia. Gillard said the decision was hers alone…..
She did, however, point to the US-India civil nuclear agreement of 2008, which lifted the “de facto international ban” on the sale of uranium to India….. While Beijing has learned to live with American forces on its eastern periphery, the possibility of an intimate US-India military relationship, as well as India’s position astride China’s key maritime shipping lanes, has generated fears of encirclement…
Thorium nuclear reactors 50 years away, if ever
Technology transitions always happen faster than the conventional market predicts PV MAGAZINE 14. NOVEMBER 2011 BY: RAY WILLS “……Some bang on about nuclear – yes, China, in raw numbers, is planning a lot – but the country is comparatively modest in the scale of things: it is planning 70 GW of nuclear by 2020, but 200 GW of renewables, also by 2020! Also, a decision hasn’t been announced over what is being done post-Fukushima, but the analysts expect the country to proceed at a more modest scale. The 12th five-year plan was released post-Fukushima and it was in that that China increased its renewables target on solar from one GW to 10 GW by 2015,…
Thorium is the latest suggestion from those attempting to distract us from renewables as the solution, but according to those in the nuclear research arena, thorium realistically is at least 50 years away from being realized. Nevertheless, I note India talking about building a 300 megawatt (MW) prototype – it’s being played up in some parts of the press – but when you look at the detail, the proponents note, “if all goes to plan, the […] reactor could be operational by the end of the decade”. That’s just a prototype. My view is that by 2025, the game will be over, we will have solved intermittency through storage, and electricity from solar will be cheaper than coal. I don’t believe I’m dreaming, simply looking at technology shifts and the capacity for rapid technology shifts in the past – go back 100 years ago and tell the buggy and whip manufacturers they will soon be out of business and imagine the response.
http://www.pv-magazine.com/opinion-analysis/blogdetails/beitrag/technology-transitions-always-happen-faster-than-the-conventional-market-predicts_100004940/
U.S. army and depleted uranium
Gulf War Syndrome and the Army’s Depleted Uranium Training Videos, Motherboard by DerekMead , Nov 12, 2011 Depleted uranium, a bi-product of enriched uranium that was used in American munitions, was the focus of military preparations before the war. We dug up some old Army videos for “Depleted Uranium General Awareness Training” that shows just how under-prepared soldiers may have been to the hazards of this potentially pretty nasty stuff. Continue reading
Mounting pile of uranium not really secure in Denver uranium mine
Uranium sifted from groundwater piles up inside mine west of Denver, By Bruce Finley, The Denver Post, 13 Nov 11 Nearly three-quarters of a ton of concentrated uranium removed from groundwater to protect metro-area drinking water is piling up at Cotter Corp.’s defunct mine west of Denver.
Cotter workers are storing it in plastic tanks inside a building at the Schwartzwalder mine, which is staffed by day but unguarded at night. State environmental overseers were notified last month of the mounting uranium. On Thursday, state officials could not address disposal, whether the uranium could be sold or whether there are security concerns.
However, on Friday morning, state health department spokesman Mark Salley said Cotter has a “radioactive materials license for management of residuals from contaminated groundwater treatment. The license specifies disposal at a licensed facility off-site, but a licensee could take the material for reprocessing if their license allowed it.
“There are no such licensees in Colorado,” Salley said.
Concentrated uranium that later is enriched can be used as fuel for nuclear power plants or to make weapons…Uranium sifted from groundwater piles up inside mine west of Denver – The Denver Posthttp://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_19312125#ixzz1djT67722
Canadian authorities turned blind eye to depleted uranium affected soldiers
Gulf War vets wounded and angry,CNews By Kris Sims, Parliamentary Bureau, 10 Nov 11 OTTAWA — All of Louise Richard’s hair fell out after she came home from the Gulf War. “Ninety-five percent of the casualties we dealt with were Iraqi prisoners of war,” the former army nurse said. “They were obviously totally contaminated with depleted uranium, they had shrapnel, we operated on them, so here we were — hands in guts and breathing all of these things.”500 abandoned uranium mines contaminated Navajo land
Summit focuses on uranium contamination on Navajo land, News 13 FARMINGTON, N.M. (AP) – Tuesday marks the start of a yearly summit focused on the Navajo Nation’s problems with uranium contamination. Six federal agencies, along with tribal officials and others are gathering in Farmington, N.M., for the 3-day summit. Jared Blumenfeld of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Navajo President Ben Shelly are set to give keynote speeches.
The reservation has more than 500 abandoned mines. Federal and tribal officials have screened hundreds of structures for potential contamination, replacing some of them. They’ve also tested unregulated water sources. Officials who developed a 5-year plan to address the contamination are expected to give progress reports this week.
Concerns over safety and the health of its people led the Navajo Nation to ban uranium mining on the reservation in 2005. http://www.kold.com/story/15983987/summit-focuses-on-uranium-contamination-on-navajo
Global nuclear industry in turmoil – uranium company’s profit drops 60%
Cameco reduces production forecast, Globe and Mail, BRENDA BOUW — MINING REPORTER, VANCOUVER, Nov. 07, 2011 Uranium giant Cameco Corp. lowered its annual production forecast and reported third-quarter financial results below expectations amid continuing upheaval in the nuclear power industry.
Saskatoon-based Cameco, in a bidding war with Rio Tinto PLC for Hathor Exploration Ltd. during the current uranium price slump, cited “unfavourable market conditions” for the earnings underperformance…..
Production of uranium used to fuel nuclear power plants fell 5 per cent to 5.3 million pounds in the quarter, and for the year it is expected to drop 1 per cent to 21.7 million pounds, Cameco said. It also lowered guidance for UF6, a compound used to make enriched uranium, by 6 per cent….
profit fell 60 per cent…… Cameco shares closed down 6.5 per cent to $20.35 on the Toronto Stock Exchange on Monday, a sign investors are worried that Cameco will continue to suffer from volatility in the sector following the Japanese nuclear disaster.
“We expect the current uncertainly in the uranium market to linger for the near to medium term,” Mr. Gitzel warned.
Driving industry concerns are forecasts for excess uranium inventories in Japan and Germany, which represent 12 and 5 per cent of global nuclear generating capacity, respectively. Germany is phasing out its nuclear program, and Japan is operating only 11 of its 54 reactors since a tsunami and earthquake destroyed its Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant this past March…..
China, too, is slowing its rapid nuclear power expansion plans as it takes extra measures to ensure its facilities are safe….
Finally some justice for Spokane Tribe uranium workers
a recently completed epidemiology study of the 2,700-member tribe conducted by the state Department of Health and the Northwest Indian Health Board concluded there were high rates of cancer among tribal members who worked at the mine.
Women of the tribe have contracted cancer from cleaning the clothes of the men who worked in the mines,
Progress made toward cleaning up uranium mine, Canadian Business By AP | November 06, 2011 SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) — The Spokane Tribe of Indians has recently won big victories in its long fight against uranium contamination, including a deal reached this fall between the federal government and mining companies to clean up the long-closed Midnite Mine on the reservation.
In addition, tribal members in September became eligible to receive federal compensation if they became sick while working at the mine. Continue reading
Scotland’s opposition to depleted uranium weapons testing
The Labour MP for North Ayrshire and Arran, Katy Clark, said she would be concerned if DU tests resumed. “There remain health concerns about these weapons and we should be concentrating on getting an international ban on their production and use,” she said.
Anger as depleted uranium shells to be test-fired again Depleted uranium shells are blamed for causing radioactive and heavy metal pollution and are used by Challenger tanks, HERALD SCOTLAND EXCLUSIVE BY ROB EDWARDS ENVIRONMENT EDITOR, 6 Nov 2011 HIGHLY controversial depleted uranium shells are set to be test-fired in Scotland again, the Sunday Herald has learned. Continue reading
Brakes put on Colorado uranium mining
in the rush to develop this infamous resource (again), there was a rare moment of rationality two weeks ago when a federal judge ordered DOE officials to halt permits for exploring and mining in Colorado. U.S. District Judge William Martinez said the agency “acted arbitrarily and capriciously in failing to analyze site-specific impacts” on the people and places in the path of the mining boom. He said the DOE violated environmental laws, including the Endangered Species Act, by failing to consult U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service scientists about the potential impacts of the extractions.
In the rush for uranium, cooler heads prevail — for now High Country News, By Heather Hansen, Red Lodge Clearing House, 4 Nov 11 Greens got what seemed like a rare bit of good news when the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) last week released their Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Northern Arizona Proposed Withdrawal. The report looks at the potential impacts of removing federal lands near the Grand Canyon from mining consideration for the next two decades. Continue reading
Uranium price falling – AREVA stops African project
Areva suspends uranium mine project, SMH ,November 3, 2011 – French nuclear giant Areva says it is suspending a mining project in the Central African Republic for “a year or two” because of a drop in uranium prices since the Fukushima disaster.
Work on developing the Bakouma mine, which is estimated to hold about 32,000 tonnes of uranium, has been suspended until the market value of the commodity rises again, an Areva spokesman said on Wednesday……
The price of uranium subsequently dropped by about 30 per cent, at a time when Areva was hoping for a global nuclear power renaissance.
On Wednesday the price of a pound (450 grams) of uranium was at $US52 ($A50.49), down from $US68 in March before the accident…..
Areva began development works at the mine under a deal signed in 2007 and to date has spent 106 million euros on developing the site.
The 2007 deal ended friction between Areva and the country’s authorities, who had handed mining rights to British-Canadian firm UraMin in 2006.
Areva bought out UraMin in July 2007 to the displeasure of the government, which said the “irregular” sale showed “disregard for the rights and interests” of the Central African people…..
Areva is expected to present a plan next month on a rethink of its corporate strategies in the wake of the Japanese disaster.
Woes of Australian uranium miner Paladin
1 This Month
Chernobyl: The Lost Tapes – A good documentary on Chernobyl on SBS available On Demand for the next 3 weeks– https://www.sbs.com.au/ondemand/tv-program/chernobyl-the-lost-tapes/2352741955560
of the week–London Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament
Tell the Ukrainian Government to Drop Prosecution of Peace Activist Yurii Sheliazhenko
To see nuclear-related stories in greater depth and intensity – go to https://nuclearinformation.wordpress.com
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