Private equity investment firm Sentient Group has agreed to invest in Toro via the placement of 125 million shares at 8c per share.

Toro advises that negotiations for a further $10 million investment from Sentient are at an advanced stage.

In return for the funding, Toro will pay Sentient a unitisation fee equal to 2.5% of gross proceeds derived from the Wiluna uranium project in Western Australia.

Toro has also acquired a 19.8% stake in Canadian uranium company Strateco Resources, a $C3 million ($A3 million) secured loan receivable and $14.1 million of junior secured convertible notes in Strateco.

Toro managing director Vanessa Guthrie said she was pleased with the funding commitment and the move to expand the company’s portfolio.

“This should enable us to focus on bringing Wiluna into production into the expected emerging market supply gap and promoting the potential of the Wiluna uranium province, while building an initial global asset base that maximises for our shareholders the upside potential of an improving uranium price,” Guthrie said.

Uranium was last trading at $US36.38 per pound.

Toro noted Sentient’s experience in mine and processing technology as well as corporate assistance in the final stages of project feasibility and financing.

In conjunction with the share subscription by Sentient, Toro has moved to raise another $5 million via a placement to sophisticated investors and a share purchase plan to its shareholders.

Proceeds from the combined transactions will be used for resource development and optimisation work at Wiluna as well as working capital and maintenance of the company’s newly expanded portfolio.

Strateco has three mining properties and 792 claims for a total area of 420sq.km in the Canadian provinces of Quebec and Saskatchewan.

The company is focused on developing the Matoush project in Quebec, where it has invested more than $C125 million ($A125.9 million) since 2006.

Strateco’s latest inventory under Canadian standards totalled 2.5 million tonnes at 0.5% uranium oxide for 27 million pounds of uranium oxide.

Toro requested a trading halt this morning ahead of its capital raising, with shares last priced at A8.2c.