Toro Energy to grow Wiluna uranium project with satellite deposits

The planned scoping follows up on the promise in a previous evaluation that identified meaningful upside through the inclusion of nearby uranium resources at Lake Way and Centipede-Millipede satellite deposits.

The new study will evaluate whether the integration of both deposits to the company’s planned Lake Maitland operation extends the potential processing of high-grade uranium resource well beyond the seventh year. Toro had previously said that the standalone Lake Maitland operation is expected to process high grade material for up to seven years.

Executive chair Richard Homsany said that, alongside the extension study, Toro is also continuing pilot plant design work for the project located 105 km south-east of the Wiluna township and 730 km north-east of Perth.

“We are pleased that strengthening uranium market conditions continue as we develop and seek to maximize the value of the Wiluna uranium project, especially our evaluation of extending our Lake Maitland uranium-vanadium processing operation,” Homsany said in the statement.

According to 2023 figures by the World Nuclear Association, Australia’s known uranium resources are the world’s largest – almost one-third of the globe’s total. The country does not use nuclear power itself, but it’s the world’s fourth producer of the radioactive material, behind Kazakhstan, Canada and Namibia.

The spot price for uranium has been hitting records highs in past weeks and climbed to just over $103 per pound on Monday, according to Numerco, a UK-based spot price for uranium. This level, not seen since 2007, follows a roughly 90% price gain for the metal in 2023 in a market that has struggled to keep up with fresh demand.

Last week, prices for uranium hit an almost 15-year high after the world’s largest producer, Kazakhstan’s Kazatomprom (LON: KAP), warned it was likely to fall short of its output targets over the next two years.