Oman To Invest Up To $120 Million In Berkeley Energia’s Salamanca Uranium Mine

31 Aug (NucNet): Spain-based uranium miner Berkeley Energia signed an agreement for Oman’s sovereign wealth fund to invest up to $120m in construction and completion of the Salamanca uranium mine in northwest Spain, the company said in a statement on 30 August 2017. The agreement stipulates that the Oman fund will provide Berkeley Energia an interest-free and unsecured convertible loan of $65m which can be converted into ordinary shares at GBP 50 pence per share resulting in the fund owning approximately 28% of the company. The agreement also allows the fund to acquire options which can be converted into shares at a weighted average price of GBP 85 pence per share, contributing a further $55m towards the later phases of the mine’s development and resulting in the fund holding a further 9% of Berkeley Energia. In addition, the agreement gives the Oman fund the right to purchase 20% of the mine’s annual production of uranium concentrate, not to exceed one million pounds U3O8. The agreement is subject to approval by Berkeley Energia’s shareholders, the statement said. According to Berkeley Energia, the funding will help it finish construction of Salamanca, the biggest mine of its kind in Europe. Initial construction work began in January 2017 and first production is scheduled for 2019. Salamanca is expected to deliver about 4.3 million pounds a year of U308 over a mine life of 18 years. Berkeley Energia said that at full production, Salamanca will account for 10% of Europe’s total uranium requirement and will be important to the EU’s security of supply, which currently relies on Russia, Kazakhstan and Niger for almost 60% of its uranium.