The mine-builder's Deep Yellow, where he has been a fixture since leaving Paladin Energy in the mid-2010s, has just completed a slightly-delayed prefeasibility on its Tumas palaeochannel project in Namibia, and with yellowcake potentially having the resurgence of interest that has long been prophesied by its disciples, the junior is moving into a full definitive study.

 

Using TradeTech's forecast US$65 per pound uranium price - which is significantly above both today's spot and the contract prices - the PFS outlined the potential for a Langer Heinrich-style open pit mine and 3Mlb per annum processing plant, targeting an expected mid-decade supply shortfall. 

 

The study, based on just half the existing 110Mlb Tumas resources, outlines an 11.5-year operation that will cost $357 million to develop, including pre-production, sustaining and closure costs, producing 2.5Mlba at C1 cash costs of $27.3/lb after vanadium credits.

 

All-in sustaining costs are estimated at $30.70/lb.

 

The PFS suggests the operation will deliver a post-tax net present value of A$276 million, with an internal rate of return of 21.1%, for gross revenue of US$1.89 billion.

 

Project payback is estimated at under four years.

 

The DFS will involve refining and optimising the PFS, and funding drilling to ensure sufficient reserves are proved up at Tumas, which sits within the wider Reptile project. 

 

Reserves stand at 31Mlb today.

 

Borshoff said the PFS had delivered "impressive economic numbers" that were better than the 2020 scoping study. 

 

"Tumas is an exciting development opportunity and one of very few globally over the last four years that has progressed from brownfields exploration to completion of a PFS, now moving on to a DFS," he said.

 

Believing the nuclear sector will help improve pricing, Borshoff wants to establish a multi-platform, 5-10Mlbpa production profile. 

 

Deep Yellow's stock has traded between A11-79c over the past year, spiked 7% in early trade to 77.5c, valuing the company at $196 million.