More than 38% of eligible UEX
securities have already been tendered, as of this press release,
with 93.4% voting in favour of the UEC transaction
CORPUS
CHRISTI, Texas and SASKATOON, SK, Aug. 8, 2022
/CNW/ - Uranium Energy Corp. (NYSE American: UEC) (the
"Company" or "UEC") and UEX Corporation (TSX:
UEX) "UEX" are pleased to announce that they have
entered into an amending agreement (the "Amending
Agreement") to the previously announced arrangement agreement
dated June 13, 2022, as amended
June 23, 2022, among UEX, UEC and the
UEC 2022 Acquisition Corp., pursuant to which UEC will acquire all
of the issued and outstanding common shares of UEX ("UEX
Shares") by way of a statutory plan of arrangement (the
"Arrangement") under the Canada Business Corporations
Act (the "Transaction").
Under the terms of the Amending Agreement, holders of UEX
Shares ("UEX Shareholders") will now receive 0.0890 of one
common share of UEC (a "UEC Share") for each UEX Share held,
implying consideration of approximately C$0.49 per UEX Share based on the closing price
of UEX Shares and UEC Shares on the Toronto Stock Exchange and the
NYSE American Exchange, respectively, and the spot exchange rate as
of August 5, 2022. The Amending
Agreement also increases the termination fee (to be paid by UEX to
UEC if the Transaction is terminated in certain specified
circumstances) by 7%, which is an increase proportional to the
percentage increase in the offered exchange ratio under the
Amending Agreement. Other than the foregoing, the terms of the
Transaction remain unamended.
Amir Adnani, President and CEO of
UEC, commented: "We are pleased to have come to an agreement with
UEX and look forward to completing this Transaction following the
UEX Shareholder vote tomorrow. As mentioned previously, the
acquisition is expected to double UEC's uranium
resources1 at only 14.2% dilution to existing UEC
Shareholders. Completion of this Transaction will create the
largest, diversified North American focused uranium company with
100% unhedged production. Roger
Lemaitre and the UEX team have done a remarkable job
assembling and advancing a highly prospective portfolio and UEC is
looking forward to working with their experienced Canadian team to
unlock additional value for shareholders."
Roger Lemaitre, President and CEO
of UEX, commented: "We look forward to tomorrow's Meeting where
shareholders will have the opportunity to vote on the amended
UEC-UEX arrangement. We believe the combined companies will become
the 'go-to' name in the uranium industry. The combined company
would be unique, possessing a strong balance sheet, near-term
production capacity at the Wyoming
and Texas Hubs, a solid long-term uranium production pipeline, the
ability to continue to grow its resource base through continued
exploration in the Athabasca Basin
and its U.S. properties, and the opportunity to extract additional
value by holding one of the largest property portfolios in the
industry."
The terms of the Amending Agreement were agreed following
receipt by UEX of a competing acquisition proposal on July 28, 2022 for all of the issued and
outstanding UEX Shares.
Board of Directors'
Recommendations
The Amending Agreement has been unanimously approved by the
Board of Directors of UEX who continue to recommend that UEX
Shareholders and holders of options and restricted share units of
UEX (collectively, the "UEX Securityholders") vote in favour
of the Transaction. The Amending Agreement has also been
unanimously approved by the Board of Directors of UEC.
Transaction Conditions and
Timing
Full details of the Transaction are included in the management
information circular of UEX dated July 8,
2022 (the "Circular"). The Transaction will be
subject to the approval of at least (i) 66 2/3% of the votes cast
by UEX Shareholders, and (ii) 66 2/3% of the votes cast by UEX
Securityholders, voting together as a single class, at the special
meeting of UEX Securityholders which will continue to be held on
Tuesday, August 9, 2022, at
10:00 a.m. (Vancouver time) at the Metropolitan Hotel, 645
Howe Street, Vancouver, British
Columbia (the "Meeting").
If the UEX Securityholders approve the Arrangement at the
Meeting, it is currently anticipated that the Arrangement will be
completed in by mid-August, subject to obtaining court approval,
stock exchange approval and certain required regulatory approvals,
as well as the satisfaction or waiver of other conditions contained
in the Arrangement Agreement.
On completion of the Arrangement, former UEX Shareholders are
expected to hold approximately 14.2% of the outstanding UEC Shares
(based on the issued and outstanding UEC Shares as of the date
hereof).
None of the securities to be issued pursuant to the Transaction
have been or will be registered under the United States Securities
Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act"), or any
state securities laws, and any securities issuable in the
Transaction are anticipated to be issued in reliance upon available
exemptions from such registration requirements pursuant to Section
3(a)(10) of the U.S. Securities Act and applicable exemptions under
state securities laws. This press release does not constitute an
offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any
securities.
UEX Securityholders who have questions regarding the Transaction
should contact Laurel Hill Advisory Group by telephone at
1-877-452-7184 (North American Toll Free) or 1-416-304-0211
(Outside North America), or by email at
assistance@laurelhill.com.
About Uranium Energy
Corp
Uranium Energy Corp is America's leading, fastest growing,
uranium mining company listed on the NYSE American. UEC is a pure
play uranium company and is advancing the next generation of
low-cost, environmentally friendly In-Situ Recovery (ISR) mining
uranium projects. The Company has two production ready ISR hub and
spoke platforms in South Texas and
Wyoming, anchored by fully
licensed and operational processing capacity at the Hobson and Irigaray plants. UEC also has seven
U.S. ISR uranium projects with all of their major permits in place.
Additionally, the Company has other diversified holdings of uranium
assets, including: (1) one of the largest physical uranium
portfolios of U.S. warehoused U3O8; (2) a
major equity stake in the only royalty company in the sector,
Uranium Royalty Corp.; and (3) a pipeline of resource-stage uranium
projects in Arizona, Colorado, New
Mexico and Paraguay. The
Company's operations are managed by professionals with a recognized
profile for excellence in their industry, a profile based on many
decades of hands-on experience in the key facets of uranium
exploration, development and mining.
About UEX Corporation
UEX is a Canadian uranium and cobalt exploration and development
company involved in an exceptional portfolio of uranium projects.
UEX's directly-owned portfolio of projects is located in the
eastern, western and northern perimeters of the Athabasca Basin, the world's richest uranium
region which in 2020 accounted for approximately 8.1% of the global
primary uranium production. In addition to advancing its uranium
development projects through its ownership interest in JCU, UEX is
currently advancing several other uranium deposits in the
Athabasca Basin which include the
Paul Bay, Ken Pen and Ōrora deposits
at the Christie Lake Project , the Kianna, Anne, Colette and
58B deposits at its currently
49.1%-owned Shea Creek Project, the Horseshoe and Raven deposits
located on its 100%-owned Horseshoe-Raven Project and the West Bear
Uranium Deposit located at its 100%-owned West Bear Project.
Additional Information
Full details of the amendment are set out in the Amending
Agreement, which will be filed by UEX under its profile on SEDAR at
www.sedar.com and UEC under its profiles on SEDAR at www.sedar.com
and EDGAR at www.sec.gov. In addition, further information
regarding the Arrangement has been shared in the Circular prepared
in connection with the Meeting and filed on UEX's profile on
www.sedar.com. All UEX Securityholders are urged to read the
Amending Agreement and the Circular, as they will contain
additional important information concerning the Arrangement.
Stock Exchange Information:
NYSE American: UEC
Frankfurt Stock Exchange Symbol: U6Z
WKN: AØJDRR
ISN: US916896103
Safe Harbor Statement
Except for the statements of historical fact contained herein,
the information presented in this news release constitutes
"forward-looking statements" as such term is used in applicable
United States and Canadian laws.
These statements relate to analyses and other information that are
based on forecasts of future results, estimates of amounts not yet
determinable and assumptions of management. Any other statements
that express or involve discussions with respect to predictions,
expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions
or future events or performance (often, but not always, using words
or phrases such as "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected",
"anticipates" or "does not anticipate", "plans, "estimates" or
"intends", or stating that certain actions, events or results
"may", "could", "would", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be
achieved) are not statements of historical fact and should be
viewed as "forward-looking statements". Such forward looking
statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other
factors which may cause the actual results, performance or
achievements of the Company to be materially different from any
future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by
such forward-looking statements. Such risks and other factors
include, among others, market and other conditions, the actual
results of exploration activities, variations in the underlying
assumptions associated with the estimation or realization of
mineral resources, the availability of capital to fund programs and
the resulting dilution caused by the raising of capital through the
sale of shares, accidents, labor disputes and other risks of the
mining industry including, without limitation, those associated
with the environment, delays in obtaining governmental approvals,
permits or financing or in the completion of development or
construction activities, title disputes or claims limitations on
insurance coverage. Although the Company has attempted to identify
important factors that could cause actual actions, events or
results to differ materially from those described in
forward-looking statements, there may be other factors that cause
actions, events or results not to be as anticipated, estimated or
intended. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove
to be accurate as actual results and future events could differ
materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly,
readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking
statements contained in this news release and in any document
referred to in this news release. Certain matters discussed in this
news release and oral statements made from time to time by
representatives of the Company may constitute forward-looking
statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995 and the Federal securities laws. Although the
Company believes that the expectations reflected in such
forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions,
it can give no assurance that its expectations will be achieved.
Forward-looking information is subject to certain risks, trends and
uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially
from those projected. Many of these factors are beyond the
Company's ability to control or predict. Important factors that may
cause actual results to differ materially and that could impact the
Company and the statements contained in this news release can be
found in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange
Commission. For forward-looking statements in this news release,
the Company claims the protection of the safe harbor for
forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The Company assumes no obligation to
update or supplement any forward-looking statements whether as a
result of new information, future events or otherwise. This press
release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation
of an offer to buy securities.
Forward-Looking Statement
Cautions
This news release includes certain "Forward‐Looking Statements"
within the meaning of the United States Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and "forward‐looking information"
under applicable Canadian securities laws. These forward‐looking
statements or information relate to, among other things: the
ability of UEC and UEX to satisfy the other conditions to, and to
complete the Arrangement; and the anticipated timing of closing of
the Arrangement.
These statements reflect the parties' respective current views
with respect to future events and are inherently subject to
significant business, economic, competitive, political and social
uncertainties and contingencies. Such factors include, the
synergies expected from the Arrangement not being realized;
business integration risks; fluctuations in general macro‐economic
conditions; fluctuations in securities markets and the market price
of UEC Shares; fluctuations in the spot and forward price of
uranium or certain other commodities (such as natural gas, fuel oil
and electricity); fluctuations in the currency markets (such as the
Canadian dollar and the U.S. dollar); changes in national and local
government, legislation, taxation, controls, regulations and
political or economic developments in Canada and the
United States; operating or technical difficulties in
connection with mining or development activities; risks and hazards
associated with the business of mineral exploration, development
and mining (including environmental hazards and industrial
accidents); risks relating to the credit worthiness or financial
condition of suppliers, refiners and other parties with whom the
parties do business; inability to obtain adequate insurance to
cover risks and hazards; and the presence of laws and regulations
that may impose restrictions on mining, availability and increasing
costs associated with mining inputs and labour; the speculative
nature of mineral exploration and development, including the risks
of obtaining necessary licenses, permits and approvals from
government authorities; title to properties; and the factors
identified under the caption "Risk Factors" in UEC's Form 10K and
under the caption "Risk Factors" in UEX's Annual Information
Form.
In addition, the failure of UEX to comply with the terms of the
Amending Agreement may result in UEX being required to pay a
termination fee to UEC, the result of which could have a material
adverse effect on UEX's financial position and results of
operations and its ability to fund growth prospects and current
operations. Although the UEX has attempted to identify important
factors that could cause actual results to differ materially, there
may be other factors that cause results not to be anticipated,
estimated or intended. The parties do not intend, and do not assume
any obligation, to update these forward‐looking statements or
information to reflect changes in assumptions or changes in
circumstances or any other events affecting such statements or
information, other than as required by applicable law.
___________________________
|
1 Subject to
the completion of technical report summaries by UEC following
closing of the proposed acquisition of UEX.
|
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SOURCE Uranium Energy Corp