The five-year, $5.1 million grant is the largest award of its kind ever made by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada.

Led by Ontario's Laurentian University, University of Ottawa and Barrick Gold Corp. (TSE, NYSE: ABX), the "Footprints" project focuses on research and development for tools to find deeply buried or remote ore deposits by following the ore trace elements, a.k.a. footprints.

The mining firms have pledged $2.8 million in cash and $3.9 miilion in kind towards the project through the Canada Mining Innovation Council.

Image: farbled / Shutterstock.com

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Total Uranium One attributable production in the first three months of the year was 3.1 million pounds of U₃O₈ — 10% higher than its total attributable production of 2.8 million pounds in Q1 2012, and 7% lower than Q4 2012 production (see figure).

Compared to its first quarter figures for last year, U1 output at its Kazakhstan mines in the first quarter for 2013 increased only 4% while yellowcake production at its American and Australian facilities jumped by 113%.

U1 attributable production dynamics by production facilities, pounds of U3O8

Revenue, including the revenue of joint ventures, of $62.6 million in Q1 2013 decreased by 34.7% compared to the $95.9 million in 2012, due to slumped sales volumes and a decline in the average realized sales price from $53 per pound to $47 per pound.

U1 attributable sales volume decreased on 22%, from 1.8 million pounds of U₃O₈ in Q1 2012 to 1.4 million pounds in Q1 2013.

The average total cash cost per pound sold was $17 per pound for Q1 2013, compared to $14 per pound for Q1 2012.

The net loss for Q1 2013 was $9.5 million or $0.01 per share, compared to net earnings of $4.5 million or $0.00 per share for Q1 2012.

The adjusted net loss for Q1 2013 was $4.3 million or $0.00 per share, compared to adjusted net earnings of $15.1 million or $0.02 per share for Q1 2012.

On March 25, 2013, U1 entered into a three year, unsecured revolving credit facility with its major owner, ARMZ Uranium Holding, for $1.45 billion. Drawn amounts bear interest at 3.3% per annum. The proceeds of the loan will be used for initiatives currently being evaluated by U1 to expand its business.

Thus, Q1 2013 production and financial results were quite controversial for one of the world’s biggest uranium producers. The aftermath of the Fukushima nuclear catastrophe still adversely affect global uranium market with declined demand and reduced spot prices.

On the other hand, long-term development indicators for the nuclear power industry remain strong and most analysts see potential rebound in uranium prices at the end of 2013 or early in 2014.

In this light, ARMZ’s $1.45 billion injection into U1 could be considered as another good signal of confidence for the weakened uranium market.

Image courtesy Uranium One

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North Butte is projected to produce about 300,000 lbs of uranium concentrate in 2013. It is expected to ramp up to more than 700,000 lbs annually by 2015.

The Campbell county in situ mine is a satellite to the company's Smith Ranch-Highland facility in Converse county mine.

Saskatchewan-based Cameco is one of the world's largest uranium producers and the largest producer in the US.

Image courtesy Cameco

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The company plans to open the Pinenut mine, which has previously active in the late 1980s, at the end of May or beginning of June.

While the mine is located on land the US interior secretary made off-limits in Jan. 2012 to new mining, Pinenut is exempt from the ban because it had been operation before then.

The company's Arizona One mine in the same region is slated to close at the end of this year.

Image courtesy Energy Fuels Inc.

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The new scheme has two parts. First, a minimum royalty will be applied to all mining companies, regardless of earned profits or not, based on their mined output. Second, a progressive mining tax will also be calculated, based on the profit margin. Companies must pay the higher of the two amounts.

The new tax will generate up to $200 million in 2015 for the province, according to the Globe and Mail. In the next dozen years, cumulative revenues could be up to $1.8 billion.

The Quebec Mining Association said it wasn't a good time to change the rules and some companies may end up delaying their projects.

Canadian-based gold producer Agnico-Eagle Mines, which has three mines in Quebec, told Reuters the overall impact on its operations appeared to be minor. The firm also said it hoped the new plan would restore stability and investor confidence in the industry for the long-term.

Image courtesy Agnico-Eagle

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The better than expected US jobless figures out early Friday built on gains sparked by the EU cutting interest yesterday, but a growing consensus that the sell-off in commodities over growth fears in China may have been overblown did the most to buoy the sector.

China has been the main driving force of the so-called commodity supercycle of the last decade and forecasts of tepid growth in the country has made commodity investors nervous this year.

But recent numbers from the world's second largest economy  suggest a brighter outlook:

• Electricity consumption growth which many believe may be a better indicator of economic expansion than China's official GDP figures (which are open to manipulation by politicians) is set to accelerate to as much as 8.5% growth year on year.
• The country's steel industry – a proxy for the health of the country's infrastructure investment dependent economy – has upped crude steel output 9% this year against forecasts of 4%–5% growth
• Land sale revenues have soared this year with plots in China's 306 largest cities fetching 84% more than last year while for the 240 so-called top tier cities registering a 282% rise.

China dominates the global trade in just about every commodity including iron ore (representing over 60% of world trade), copper (42%), coal (47%), nickel (36%), lead (44%) and zinc (41%).

The spot copper price surged almost 7% in heavy volumes to change hands at $3.31 a pound or just under $7,300 a tonne on Friday, bouncing back strongly from 18-month lows set on Wednesday while lead, tin and nickel also gained.

The stronger metals prices fed through to mining stocks with the diversified majors making strong gains without exception.

World number one miner BHP Billiton (LON:BHP) jumped 2.9%, Brazil's Vale (NYSE:VALE) added over 2%, while Rio Tinto (LON:RIO) climbed 4.2%.

Newly merged Glencore Xstrata (LON:GLEN) had a positive first day of trading, ending up 1.3% after earlier jumping as much as 3.3% affording what is now the world's number four miner a $70 billion market value.

Anglo American (LON:AAL) shares moved 4.3% for the better, while Canada's Teck Resources (TSX:TCK) managed a more modest gain of 3%.

Copper giant Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) added 2.7% after workers ended a three-day strike at its flagship Grasberg mine in Indonesia.

Southern Copper Corp (NYSE:SCCO) was a major gainer, up 4.5% while fellow South American copper producer Antofagasta (LON:ANTO) was the top performer, jumping 7.6%. Beaten down ENRC (LON:ENRC) also increased its value, bouncing 5.7%.

While iron ore continued to drift lower with benchmark 62% fines at the Chinese port of Tianjin ending the week below $130 for the first time since December, iron ore stocks also got in on the action.

ADRs of South Africa's Kumba Iron Ore (NYSE:KIROY) was unchanged in New York, but Fortescue Metals Group (ASX:FMG) of Australia, US-based Cliffs Natural Resources and Ukraine's Ferrexpo (LON:FXPO) climbed 5.5%, 3.9% and 6.2% respectively.

World number one uranium miner Cameco Corporation (TSE:CCO) added 2.2% despite a uranium price languishing in the low $40s.

Precious metals trading was noticeably more subdued with gold for June delivery ending flat for the week at $1,464 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. July silver ended the week slightly lower at $24.10 an ounce.

Newmont Mining Corp's shares traded up 1% thanks to the US-based miner's relatively high exposure to copper, global number one Barrick Gold Corp added 2.2%, but is still down more than 40% since the start of the year while fellow Canadian gold counters Goldcorp (TSX:G) and Kinross Gold (TSX:K) were both static.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) fell less than a percent, but Johannesburg-peer Harmony Gold (NYSE:HMY) was hammered down 9.6%.

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While a decline in profit was expected, Cameco’s figures were beyond analysts’ estimates with net income falling to Cdn $9 million (2 cents per share), from Cdn$129 million or 33 cents in the same period last year.

The Saskatoon, Saskatchewan-based miner said it produced 5.9 million pounds of uranium during the quarter and sold 5.1 million pounds. A year earlier, it had output of 4.8 million pounds and sales of 8.2 million pounds.

Cameco’s average realized price for uranium dropped 2% year over year to $48.25 per pound.

The uranium market has been in a downward spiral since the earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan in March 2011, crippling Tokyo Electric Power Co.’s Fukushima Dai-Ichi nuclear power plant.

Spot prices have dropped about 40% as several nations, led by Germany and Japan, have reduced their dependence on nuclear power.

According to the World Nuclear Association, Kazakhstan’s state-owned Kazatomprom and Paris-based Areva SA (AREVA) are the top two uranium miners in the world.

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The one million acres area around the park is under a 20-year ban on new uranium mining claims, which was passed by the Obama administration last year. The ruling, however, doesn’t affect Energy Fuels’ mine, as the company obtained the rights for its Canyon Mine about two decades ago.

Several environment groups, including the Grand Canyon Trust, the Sierra Club, the Centre for Biological Diversity as well as the Havasupai tribe, are planning to request a revision of the mine permit, which they deemed outdated, as it was granted based on a 1986 study by the US Forest Service.

But Curtis Moore, a spokesman for Energy Resources, told the Guardian the Forest Service has already looked at that study, concluding that it is still adequate.

In an e-mail communication, Moore told MINING.com that talking about a "mining ban" is incorrect, as the Obama administration only "withdrew" these lands from mineral location, acknowledging that there are mines with pre-existing rights that could be allowed to proceed.

In April last year, another Canadian mining company, Quaterra Alaska, together with county supervisors in northern Arizona filed a lawsuit against the U.S. government, aiming to reverse the prohibiting rule.

Uranium resources in the so-called Arizona Strip represent about 40% of the US reserves. The yellow element was mined extensively there after World War II for use in the government's nuclear weapons program.

According to last year's figures, uranium mining in the belt could create more than 1,000 jobs over a 40-year period, bringing $2 billion revenues in federal and state corporate income taxes, $168 million in state severance taxes and $9.5 million in mining claims payment and fees to local governments.

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Strateco Resources, which is exploring and developing its Matoush uranium project,  has dropped 60% in the last month and is currently trading at 6.5 cents a share.

The company said in a statement that the damages represent the loss in the company’s market capitalization since the moratorium was handed down by Yves-Francois Blanchet, the Minister of Sustainable Development, Environment, Wildlife and Parks. Damages sought could run as high as $120 million if the ". . . undue delays which are currently subject to continue and lead to irreparable losses for the Matoush project."

The company will also ask the Quebec Superior Court to order the minister to issue permits.

Strateco's Mantoush uranium project is an advanced exploration project, located in the Otish Mountains, about 275 km north of Chibougamau and 210 km northeast of Mistissini (Quebec, Canada). It's most recent drill results in December showed an indicated resource estimated at 586,000 tonnes with an average grade of 0.95 % U3O8 containing 12.33 million pounds of U3O8. The inferred mineral resource now stands at 1.69 million tonnes at an average grade of 0.44% U3O8 containing 16.44 million pounds of U3O8.

Image by Joe Shlabotnik

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The company is jointly owned by the UK, Dutch and German governments and the total sale is worth a potential $13.7 billion, according to the Telegraph.

All three public partners have agreed to sell their respective stakes to private buyers.

For the UK, it's part of its plan to cut public debt, although it says it won't sell if the deal doesn't meet its security and non-proliferation interests.

Urenco enriches uranium for about 50 customers in 18 countries. Last year, its net income rose 12% to $522 million from revenues that were up 23% at $2 billion. Company cash flows looks good to 2025 and beyond as it has orders booked for $23.4 billion during that time.

Potential buyers include France's Areva, Canadian uranium processor Cameco as well as Japan's Toshiba and Hitachi.

Image: Shutterstock.com

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Construction of the Husab mine in the western Erongo region will cost of about $129 million and will be finished sometime in 2014. The first production batch of uranium ore is expected by 2015. 

The future mine, which is located 60 kilometres northeast of Swakopmund, has at least 142,000 tonnes of uranium resources in-situ with an average grade of roughly 0.04% that could be mined for more than 20 years.

Full production is expected by 2017, with mining from two separate open pits feeding ore to a conventional agitated acid leach processing plant.

Namibian state mining company, Epangelo Mining, owns 10% of the Husab project while Chinese state-owned China Guangdong Nuclear Power Holding Corp. is a major owner with 90% interest.

With nameplate production capacity of 5,560 tonnes of uranium per year, Husab mine would potentially be the third largest uranium production facility worldwide, slightly behind the McArthur River and Cigar Lake mines in Saskatchewan.

China Guangdong Nuclear Power Holding Corp. bought the Husab project from the Australian-listed mining firm Extract Resources last year for nearly $1.9 billion.

Reportedly, the uranium from the Husab mine will be one of the largest sources of fuel for China's highly ambitious nuclear power construction program.

Full information about opening ceremony could be found here.

Image: Google maps

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AREVA Mongol, its Mongolian subsidiary, reported 50,000 tonnes of uranium in inferred resources with a grade of 0.01% as a result of ongoing exploration efforts at the Zoovch Ovoo project.

The project is located in Ulaanbadrah Soum, in the southeastern Dornogobi province of Mongolia.

Uranium mineralization is characterized as roll-front type and potentially amenable for the most effective lowest-cost in-situ leaching (ISL, a.k.a in-situ recovery) mining method.

Thus, by the volume of uranium resources in-situ, the Zoovch Ovoo project is comparable to the biggest deposits of that type in Kazakhstan.

This is not the only Mongolian exploration success for AREVA in recent years.

Two years ago, the company announced the discovery of the Dulaan Uul deposit with 9,888 tonnes of uranium, following field tests which confirmed the ISL mining method as preferable.

AREVA Mongol has 28 exploration licenses covering more than 14,100 square kilometres in the East Gobi province of Mongolia. This huge sedimentary basin contains promising uranium deposits well-suited to ISL mining technology.

At this time, AREVA is investigating the feasibility of the Dulaan Uul uranium deposit .

Mongolia has all the prerequisites to become a large uranium producer in the foreseeable future.

At the same time, political and mining law uncertainties greatly hinder development of uranium projects in country.

Image: NEA, Mongolia

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Canada is currently a top-five producer of aluminum, diamonds, nickel, platinum, potash, steel-making coal, uranium, and zinc.

Gratton warned that in today's mining world "investment dollars are highly mobile and global competition is fierce."

If Canada is to retain its place as a "global mining powerhouse," it must focus on the following key areas, according to Gratton:

• Maintaining low inflation
• Reducing debts
• Preserving and improving competitive tax levels
• Staying as a strong free trader/resisting protectionism
• Deepening engagement in emerging markets, especially in China
• Improving the regulatory framework for mining projects, while keeping environmental protection a top priority
• Addressing the looming skills crisis in the mining sector (145,000 new workers needed over the next decade to replace retirees and to fill new positions)
• Investing in critical infrastructure to support new mining projects, such as ports, all-weather roads and rail

Sources: The Mining Association of Canada; Bloomberg

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The epicentre of the 7.8 magnitude quake was near the southeast city of Khash, close to the Pakistani border, with strong tremors felt across India and the Middle East, the US Geological Survey said.

The worst hit area, along Iran’s southeastern border, is home to nearly 2 million people, but unlike last week’s quake, this one didn’t seem to have affected any of the nuclear reactors in the country.

Image released by the US Geological Survey showing the location of the earthquake in Iran.

Iranian state TV reported at least 40 people killed, but the New York Times reports Iranian government officials said the expected hundreds of deaths.

(Image from PressTV.com)

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