The Salamanca mine, 3 hours drive west of Madrid, currently in construction by Berkeley Energia, is the only new uranium mine of its kind and size being developed in the world today, and when it is operating will be Europe only nearby major source of uranium. Government reticence about commissioning replacement plants and expansion of nuclear power capacity has changed recently, largely because of increased demand for electricity bolstered by decarbonization treaties. But building new reactors takes time, so the Salamanca project finds itself alone. But it has good reasons to exist. Its unique characteristics promise low production costs.
The uranium ore is high-grade and very near the surface, only four metres in places, and located in an area of Europe that has already had considerable investment in communication and power grids. Paul Atherley, Berkeley Energia chief executive, says that European citizens have already invested in a modern infrastructure, so they might as well get a return on that. He says the mine pre-production capital expenditure of $100m will be under half that of industry norms. Mr Atherley says operating costs of $13.30 per pound of uranium make it among the world lowest-cost producers, very economic even with the current spot price at 12-year lows of around $18 per pound.
Uranium prices look like they are about to turn this corner, with industry giant Cameco share price jumping 40% in December, 2016 after a multiyear decline. If predictions for future uranium demand materialize, a Cantor Fitzgerald report says that oversupply will end by 2020 and there will be a major supply deficit for the next decade, then Mr Atherley expects Salamanca will become a key producer. About 60 million pounds of uranium have been confirmed, with a further 30 million expected, offering a possible 4.4 million pounds produced annually through to 2032. For details
See ... http://berkeleyenergia.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/160714-Salamanca-DFS_final.pdf
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