The newly completed Patterson Lake South (PLS) feasibility study has confirmed the asset as “one of the world’s elite uranium projects”, Kelowna-headquartered resource development company Fission Uranium has confirmed.
CEO Ross McElroy reports the study, conducted by Tetra Tech Canada, has delivered “greatly enhanced economics”, compared with the 2019 prefeasibility study (PFS), including an increase of 42% to the mine life, a 71.5% increase in aftertax net present value to C$1.20-billion and a 10.2% growth in the aftertax internal rate of return to 27.2%.
The mine life has increased to ten years with life of mine production of 90.9-million pounds of uranium oxide at an average unit operating cost of $13.02/lb.
“This feasibility study confirms the Tier 1 PLS project as one of the most economically significant and elite uranium development projects in the world,” he says.
The feasibility study’s capital expenditure (capex) of C$1.16-billion is also lower, albeit marginally, than the 2019 estimate.
“Showing capex to be lower than the 2019 prefeasibility report, particularly with the pressures of high global inflation, is a remarkable achievement and speaks volumes regarding the team's design and planning abilities,” says McElroy.
Given the strength of the feasibility study, Fission Uranium will continue advancing PLS through the environmental assessment and on towards a construction decision.