Energy Fuels Inc (TSE:EFR, NYSEMKT:UUUU) said on Friday regulators have issued an aquifer exemption for the Jane Dough well field in the Nichols Ranch ISR (in situ recovery) project.
The US Environmental Protection Agency made the decision in a letter dated Feb. 10 and concurred with the reclassification of the Jane Dough aquifer by the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality (WDEQ) to allow for future in situ uranium recovery.
Energy Fuels is a leading integrated US-based uranium mining company, supplying U3O8 to major nuclear utilities. Energy Fuels holds three of America's key uranium production centres, the White Mesa mill in Utah, the Nichols Ranch processing facility in Wyoming and the Alta Mesa project in Texas.
The Jane Dough well field, which is adjacent to Energy Fuels' currently producing Nichols Ranch well field, is important in sustaining the company's long-term uranium production at Nichols Ranch.
The company is currently producing uranium from the Nichols Ranch well field and expects nine header houses to be in operation during 2017.
The company expects to construct four additional header houses in the Nichols Ranch well field once sustained improvements in uranium prices are observed. Once all 13 header houses in the Nichols Ranch well field have been constructed, the company expects to advance production into the Jane Dough well field, which will be connected to the Nichols Ranch plant.
Energy Fuel's Toronto shares were up 0.7% at C$3.12 on Friday.