New Monazite Supply Agreement with The
Chemours Company
Supports Energy Fuels' Efforts to Help
Reestablish Key U.S. Supply Chain
LAKEWOOD, Colo., Dec. 14, 2020 /CNW/ - Energy Fuels Inc.
(NYSE American: UUUU) (TSX: EFR) ("Energy Fuels" or the
"Company") is pleased to announce that it has entered into
a three-year supply agreement with The Chemours Company (NYSE: CC)
("Chemours") to acquire a minimum of 2,500 tons per year of natural
monazite sands, one of the highest-grade rare earth element ("REE")
minerals in the world. Energy Fuels expects to process this
monazite at its 100%-owned White Mesa Mill starting in Q1-2021,
recover the contained uranium, and produce a marketable mixed REE
carbonate, representing an extremely important step toward
re-establishing a fully-integrated U.S. REE supply chain.
Upon a successful ramp-up of this program, Energy Fuels will be
the first U.S. company in several years to produce a marketable
mixed REE concentrate ready for separation on a commercial scale.
We estimate that the amount of REEs contained in the monazite sands
to be supplied by Chemours will equal close to 10% of total current
U.S. REE demand, as contained in end-use products.
REEs are the building-blocks of a wide array of clean energy and
advanced technologies, including wind turbines, electric vehicles,
cell phones, computers, flat panel displays, advanced optics,
catalysts, medicine, and national defense applications. Monazite
also contains significant recoverable quantities of uranium, which
fuels the production of carbon-free electricity using nuclear
technology.
"With our announcement today, southeast Utah is fast becoming America's clean energy
and critical minerals hub," stated Mark S.
Chalmers, President and CEO of Energy Fuels. "Our goal is to
domestically produce the raw materials needed for clean energy and
advanced technologies, while creating green jobs in an economically
challenged part of the country. Currently, the U.S. imports nearly
all of our rare earth, uranium and vanadium requirements, despite
having ample supplies here in the U.S. Importantly, in the United States we are highly regulated and
operate to the highest standards, which means we produce these
minerals more responsibly than many of the countries from which we
currently import. Our agreement with Chemours may be the beginning
of a real success story, not only for Energy Fuels, but also for
local communities, Native Americans, conservation groups, the
State of Utah, and the U.S. as a
whole."
"Our partnership with Energy Fuels to help support the rare
earth supply chain in the U.S. came from a deliberate process of
customer engagement and developing sustainable solutions for our
critical minerals. This is consistent with Chemours' goals of
supporting advanced technologies and clean energy, and we will
continue efforts to grow and diversify the domestic supply chain,"
stated Bryan Snell, President of
Titanium Technologies at Chemours.
Typical monazite sand ores from the southeast U.S. average about
55% total rare earth oxides ("TREO") and 0.20% uranium, which is
the typical grade of uranium found in uranium mines that have
historically fed the White Mesa Mill. Of the 55% TREO typically
found in the monazite sands, the neodymium and praseodymium oxides
("NdPr") comprise approximately 22% of the TREO. Nd and Pr are
among the most valuable of the REEs, as they are the key ingredient
in the manufacture of high-strength permanent magnets which are
essential to the lightweight and powerful motors required in
electric vehicles ("EVs") and permanent magnet wind turbines used
for renewable energy generation, as well as to an array of other
modern technologies, including, mobile devices and defense
applications.
The monazite sands will be from Chemours' Offerman Mineral Sand
Plant in Georgia. Shipments of
monazite sands from Georgia to the
White Mesa Mill in Utah are
expected to commence in the first quarter of 2021. The Company
expects to recover uranium from the monazite and produce a
commercially salable mixed REE carbonate containing ~71% TREO (dry
basis). This REE product will be ready for REE separation, which is
the next step in producing usable REE products.
The Company is also in discussions with other entities to
acquire additional supplies of monazite and is working with the
U.S. Department of Energy ("DOE") to evaluate the potential to
process other types of REE and uranium bearing ores at the White
Mesa Mill produced from coal-based resources. The Company has a
goal to process 15,000+ tons of monazite and other sources of ore
per year for the recovery of REEs and uranium.
The Company also believes this project may, in time, result in
among the lowest-cost REE production in the western world, since
the Company is obtaining monazite from existing mining
facilities in Georgia (and
potentially elsewhere) and utilizing its existing White Mesa Mill
processing facility in Utah.
Utilizing existing facilities avoids the significant time and cost
required to license and develop new facilities. In addition, since
monazite sands are currently being separated from other mineral
sands in Georgia and elsewhere,
the Company will only incur the cost to acquire the monazite,
thereby avoiding mining costs and associated risks.
The Company expects to sell some or all of its mixed REE
carbonate to buyers in Europe
and/or Asia until a REE separation
facility is established in the United
States. The Company is also evaluating the potential to
perform REE separation, and potentially other downstream REE
activities, including metal-making and alloying, in the future at
the White Mesa Mill or elsewhere in the
United States.
Further, Energy Fuels' mixed REE carbonate production from
monazite sand ores is expected to utilize only a very small amount
of the White Mesa Mill's ore production capacity and very little
waste. The Company expects to acquire a minimum 2,500 tons of
monazite sands in 2021 from Chemours alone and is looking to
increase production in the future to up to approximately 15,000
tons of monazite sands per year. For comparison, the White Mesa
Mill is licensed and designed to process 2,000 tons of ore per day
on average, or 720,000 tons of ore per year. Therefore, 2,500 tons
of monazite per year represents less than 0.4% of the Mill's ore
throughput capacity, and 15,000 tons would represent only about 2%
of its throughput capacity. If the Company is successful in
securing 15,000 tons of ore similar to the Chemours monazite, the
Company believes it would produce approximately 50% of U.S. REE
demand in a mixed REE carbonate. Furthermore, since monazite is
typically comprised of approximately 55% recoverable uranium and
REEs, the total volume of resulting waste is significantly lower
than for most other mill feeds. The Company currently has 1.5
million tons of existing capacity in its fully-constructed,
state-of-the-art, 1,000-year design tailings impoundments.
Therefore, the annual waste streams from monazite ore processing
will represent less than 1% of existing tailings capacity. Even at
higher levels of monazite processing, very little waste will be
generated.
Mr. Chalmers continued: "We are extremely excited about working
with Chemours to help reestablish U.S. rare earth production.
Chemours is a leader in the U.S. heavy mineral sands industry, and,
together we are now taking an important first step in returning the
REE supply chain back to the United
States. We look forward to working with Chemours in the
future to expand our mutual contributions to this important
initiative.
"This is a proud moment for Energy Fuels, as we deploy our
unique capabilities to benefit both the environment and our
shareholders. Energy Fuels already produces uranium, which is the
fuel for clean, carbon-free nuclear energy. And we periodically
produce vanadium, which is used in the production of steel,
aerospace alloys, and advanced grid-scale batteries used to store
renewable energy. The responsible production of rare earths and
uranium from natural monazite sand ores is an important
clean-technology addition to those programs. We are also seeking to
help the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Navajo Nation
address historic, government-sponsored uranium mines, a project to
which I am personally deeply committed."
Webcast on Tuesday,
December 15, 2020 at 11:00 am
ET (9:00 am MT)
Energy Fuels will be hosting a video webcast on Tuesday, December 15, 2020 at 11:00 am ET (9:00 am
MT) to discuss the Company's entry into the commercial rare
earth space. To join the webcast, please click on the link below to
access the presentation and the viewer-controlled webcast
slides:
Energy Fuels Set to Enter Commercial Rare Earth
Production in Q1-2021
If you would like to participate in the webcast and ask
questions, please dial (888) 664-6392 (toll free in the U.S. and
Canada).
A link to a recorded version of the proceedings will be
available on the Company's website shortly after the webcast by
calling (888) 390-0541 (toll free in the U.S. and Canada) and entering the code 875131#. The
recording will be available until December
29, 2020.
About Energy Fuels: Energy Fuels is a leading
U.S.-based uranium mining company, supplying
U3O8 to major nuclear utilities. The Company
also produces vanadium from certain of its projects, as market
conditions warrant, and anticipates commencing commercial
production of rare earth element ("REE") carbonate in 2021. Its
corporate offices are in Lakewood,
Colorado, near Denver, and
all of its assets and employees are in the United States. Energy Fuels holds three of
America's key uranium production centers: the White Mesa Mill in
Utah, the Nichols Ranch in-situ
recovery ("ISR") Project in Wyoming, and the Alta Mesa ISR Project in
Texas. The White Mesa Mill is the
only conventional uranium mill operating in the U.S. today, has a
licensed capacity of over 8 million pounds of
U3O8 per year, has the ability to produce
vanadium when market conditions warrant, and is completing final
test-work for the production of REE carbonate from various
uranium-bearing ores. The Nichols Ranch ISR Project is on standby
and has a licensed capacity of 2 million pounds of
U3O8 per year. The Alta Mesa ISR Project is
also on standby and has a licensed capacity of 1.5 million pounds
of U3O8 per year. In addition to the above
production facilities, Energy Fuels also has one of the largest NI
43-101 compliant uranium resource portfolios in the U.S. and
several uranium and uranium/vanadium mining projects on standby and
in various stages of permitting and development. The primary
trading market for Energy Fuels' common shares is the NYSE American
under the trading symbol "UUUU," and the Company's common shares
are also listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the trading
symbol "EFR." Energy Fuels' website is www.energyfuels.com.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking
Statements:
This news release contains certain "Forward Looking
Information" and "Forward Looking Statements" within the
meaning of applicable securities legislation, which may include,
but is not limited to, statements with respect to: the Company
being a leading producer of uranium in the U.S.; any expectation
that the Company is able to produce REE carbonate from
uranium-bearing ores or that the Company will commence commercial
production of REE carbonate in 2021 or at all; any expectation
that the Company's REE project may, in time, result in among the
lowest cost REE production in the western world; any expectation
that the Company will be successful in acquiring additional
supplies of monazite, or will be successful in processing other
types of REE- and uranium bearing ores at the White Mesa Mill; any
expectation that the Company will be successful in achieving its
goal of processing 15,000+ tons of monazite and other sources of
ore per year; any expectation that the Company will be able to sell
some or all of its REE carbonate to buyers in Europe and/or Asia until a REE separation facility is
established in the United States;
any expectation that the Company may potentially perform
separation, and other downstream REE activities including
metal-making and alloying, in the future at the White Mesa Mill or
elsewhere in the United States;
any expectation that the Company will be successful in helping the
EPA and Navajo Nation address historic abandoned uranium mines; any
expectation that the Company will significantly increase the number
of green jobs it is providing at the White Mesa Mill; and
any other statements regarding Energy Fuels' future expectations,
beliefs, goals or prospects; constitute forward-looking information
within the meaning of applicable securities legislation
(collectively, "forward-looking statements"). All statements in
this news release that are not statements of historical fact
(including statements containing the words "expects," "does not
expect," "plans," "anticipates," "does not anticipate," "believes,"
"intends," "estimates," "projects," "potential," "scheduled,"
"forecast," "budget" and similar expressions) should be considered
forward-looking statements. All such forward-looking statements are
subject to important risk factors and uncertainties, many of which
are beyond Energy Fuels' ability to control or predict. A number of
important factors could cause actual results or events to differ
materially from those indicated or implied by such forward-looking
statements, including without limitation factors relating to: the
Company being a leading producer of uranium in the U.S.; any
expectation that the Company is able to produce REE carbonate from
uranium-bearing ores or that the Company will commence commercial
production of REE carbonate in 2021 or at all; any expectation
that the Company's REE project may, in time, result in among the
lowest cost REE production in the western world; any expectation
that the Company will be successful in acquiring additional
supplies of monazite, or will be successful in processing other
types of REE- and uranium bearing ores at the White Mesa Mill; any
expectation that the Company will be successful in achieving its
goal of processing 15,000+ tons of monazite and other sources of
ore per year; any expectation that the Company will be able to sell
some or all of its REE carbonate to buyers in Europe and/or Asia until a REE separation facility is
established in the United States;
any expectation that the Company may potentially perform
separation, and other downstream REE activities including
metal-making and alloying, in the future at the White Mesa Mill or
elsewhere in the United States;
any expectation that the Company will be successful in helping the
EPA and Navajo Nation address historic abandoned uranium mines; any
expectation that the Company will significantly increase the number
of green jobs it is providing at the White Mesa Mill; and
the other risk factors as described in Energy Fuels' most recent
annual report on Form 10-K and quarterly financial
reports. Energy Fuels assumes no obligation to update
the information in this communication, except as otherwise required
by law. Additional information identifying risks and uncertainties
is contained in Energy Fuels' filings with the various securities
commissions, which are available online at www.sec.gov and
www.sedar.com. Forward-looking statements are provided for the
purpose of providing information about the current expectations,
beliefs and plans of the management of Energy Fuels relating to the
future. Readers are cautioned that such statements may not be
appropriate for other purposes. Readers are also cautioned not to
place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, that
speak only as of the date hereof.
View original content to download
multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/energy-fuels-set-to-enter-commercial-rare-earth-business-in-q1-2021-producing-materials-that-make-many-clean-energy-and-advanced-technologies-possible-webcast-on-dec-15-301191660.html
SOURCE Energy Fuels Inc.