TSX-V-listed GoviEx Uranium is shifting its focus to its Muntanga project in Zambia after facing a license challenge in Niger. The company plans to defend its rights to the Madaouela project in Niger but sees this situation as a chance to concentrate on Zambia.
Two weeks ago, the Nigerien government informed GoviEx that it no longer holds rights over the Madaouela project’s mining permit. The permit area has reverted to the public domain.
“This decision came despite our best efforts over almost two decades,” GoviEx said. “We transformed Madaouela from an exploratory venture into one of the world’s largest-known uranium deposits.”
GoviEx faced extreme uncertainty and low uranium prices since acquiring the license. Yet, the company was prepared to escalate development. In 2023, GoviEx secured $200 million in project-related debt financing. The company also began constructing an access road, prepared for initial groundworks and obtained its environmental and social impact assessment certificate.
“The decision to withdraw our mining rights is perplexing, given the implications for future developers who would need to start from scratch,” GoviEx stated. The company argues that the decision did not follow the withdrawal procedure prescribed under the mining code.
GoviEx is ready to pursue all necessary legal avenues to defend its rights and protect its investments. The company has formally written to Niger’s Ministry of Mines to contest the decision and seek an amicable solution as per the country’s Mining Convention.
“We are starting the process to secure independent assessments of damages related to the withdrawal of our mining rights,” GoviEx said.
Meanwhile, the need for clean energy and uncertainty regarding energy security highlight the structural deficit in uranium supply. The uranium market will continue to require new projects to meet demand.
While uranium is abundant, permitting a uranium mine can take decades. Fortunately, GoviEx’s Muntanga project in southern Zambia has all its main permits. The company aims to publish its feasibility study later this year.
“Muntanga is a project with massive potential, poised to become a cornerstone of our company. We have been developing Muntanga since 2016,” GoviEx noted. “Zambia is a democratic, stable, pro-mining country eager to develop new projects, and we look forward to advancing it.”
GoviEx is determined not to be defined by the setback in Niger but by its capacity to adapt and thrive. “Thank you for standing with us as we turn these challenges into stepping stones towards a prosperous future,” the company stated in a July 17 letter to shareholders.
The company secured $200 million for project-related debt financing in 2023, prepared initial groundworks, and obtained its environmental and social impact assessment certificate.
The decision to withdraw the mining rights is perplexing, GoviEx said, given the implications for future developers who would need to start from scratch. The company argues that the decision did not follow the prescribed withdrawal procedure under the mining code.
GoviEx is prepared to pursue all necessary legal avenues to defend its rights and investments. The company has formally written to Niger’s Ministry of Mines to contest the decision and seek an amicable solution as per Niger’s Mining Convention.
“We are starting the process to secure independent assessments of damages related to the withdrawal of our mining rights,” said GoviEx.
The company noted that the demand for clean energy and uncertainty regarding energy security highlight the structural deficit in uranium supply. The uranium market will continue to require new projects to meet demand.
While uranium is abundant, permitting a uranium mine can take decades. Fortunately, GoviEx’s Muntanga project in southern Zambia has all its main permits, and the company is reinvigorated in its focus to publish the feasibility study later this year.
“Muntanga is a project with massive potential, poised to become a cornerstone of our company. We have been developing Muntanga since 2016,” GoviEx noted. “Zambia is a democratic, stable, pro-mining country eager to develop new projects, and we look forward to advancing it.”
GoviEx is determined not to be defined by the setback in Niger but by its capacity to adapt and thrive. “Thank you for standing with us as we turn these challenges into stepping stones towards a prosperous future,” the company stated in a July 17 letter to shareholders.
Source: Mining Weekly
