JOHANNESBURG Explorer Toro Energy said on Monday that the medium- to long-term demand outlook for uranium
Sand Making Machine info remained positive and continued to support its drive to advance the Wiluna uranium project, in Western Australia.
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Greg Hall said it expected the uranium market to be volatile and a little suppressed in the short term, but believed fundamental market and social forces would continue to drive the market higher in the medium to longer term.
Subject to government and board approval, Toro Energy was planning to start production at Wiluna by 2013. The project would involve mining up to two-million tons a year of mineralised ore, over about ten years, producing 700 t/y of uranium-oxide (U3O8) concentrate. In March, the company submitted its draft environmental approval documentation to the Western Australia Environmental Protection Authority.
The earthquake- and tsunami-triggered Fukushima nuclear disaster in Japan has hit short-term demand for uranium, but Hall stressed that longer-term demand was forecast to remain positive, as evidenced by the uranium prices rebounding after initial market reactions.
The forces driving the global growth of nuclear energy are the same now as they were before this terrible natural disaster in Japan. Energy demand and the desire for internal country energy security from a low-carbon, base-load supply will mean continued growth in the industry, he stated.
The spot price for uranium is currently at $57.50/lb of U₃O8. In particular, the long-term price of between $68/lb to $70/lb of U₃O₈ has eased only around between 4% to 5% post-Fukushima, and was still 20% higher than its level last year.
Following the March 11 Fukushima accident, the European Union has requested all plants
Raymond Mill info in Europe be stress tested, while all 104 operating nuclear plants in the US had been reviewed by the Nuclear Regulatory commission. China, India, South Korea and Russia also reviewed their safety planning and recommitted to the nuclear industry.
But, the German government has introduced a new nuclear shutdown programme, whereby all 17 reactors will be phased out by 2022. Switzerland would also phase out its three nuclear power reactors at the end of their planned operating times, which would be in the 2030s.
Japan has experienced a significant shutdown of around 20 reactors out of 55. With four reactors at the Fukushima plant likely to be permanently shut, others would take some time to get back on line.
Hall pointed out that while there might be a short-term impact on uranium demand, there might be a bigger impact on uranium supply.
New uranium mines that are being approved, advanced or planned will require financing. While nuclear plant finance generally comes from a combination of government and major nuclear corporation sources, the funding for uranium mines generally comes from the equities markets.
It is likely that it will take longer to source financing for new uranium mines, which may exacerbate the expected uranium supply shortages in coming years, he said.
Further, the Fukushima nuclear accident has spurred debate on the future of nuclear globally. Following the disaster, Toro Energy reported that its discussions with all relevant stakeholders, including community leaders and traditional owners, remained positivedespite lower confidence levels.
Hall explained that lessons learned from the Fukushima nuclear accident would be applied to existing and future planned nuclear installations where applicable.
In fact, newer reactor and plant designs have already incorporated many of the features
Quarry Crusher info required to ensure avoidance of a similar incident. Emergency cooling systems, which do not rely on power or backup systems, are already designed. These systems are designed as walk away, in other words all operators could leave the plant and the reactors would continue to safely cool down.
Hall advocated for all participants in the industry to work together to respond responsibly to the challenges ahead and to maintain public confidence in the industrys capacity to continue to contribute safely and efficiently to the energy needs of the world, and said that Toro Energy would implement a plan to develop a safe and sustainable project.
