Peninsula Energy moves closer to technical and environmental review at Ross uranium project

Peninsula Energy (ASX: PEN) has had its application for a Combined Source and 11e.(2) Byproduct Material License accepted by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), completing another major regulatory milestone for its Ross in-situ uranium recovery (ISR) Project.

The application was made through its wholly-owned U.S. subsidiary Strata Energy Inc. on 31 December, 2010, and requested authorization to construct and operate an ISR facility at Ross, located near Oshoto, in northeastern Wyoming.

The acceptance review was completed ahead of schedule and keeps the Ross Project on track. It was performed to confirm the completeness and technical adequacy of the application, which will now undergo a formal, detailed technical and environmental review.

Peninsula is targeting commencement of uranium recovery at the Ross Project in 2012.

Gus Simpson, Peninsula's executive chairman said “throughout the permitting process Strata has established strong lines of communication with the various regulatory bodies and has submitted high-quality applications which have resulted in an efficient, timely review process.

"The early acceptance of this application is a strong indicator of the overall document quality, which is expected to result in minimal requests for additional Information during the full review.”

The proposed facility would consist of wellfields, pipelines and a central plant to process extracted uranium into yellowcake for commercial use in nuclear power plants.

The Ross Project forms the core of the greater Lance Project, with primary mineral processing activities centered in this initial production area.

The NRC will conduct a public meeting on 7 July 2011 to discuss results of the acceptance review and paths forward for both the environmental and technical evaluations.

Peninsula plans to join other successful uranium producers in Wyoming and intends to use the most environmentally benign uranium recovery process available.

In February Peninsula signed a first sales agreement to supply 1.15 million pounds of uranium oxide over seven years to a Tier 1 power utility in the U.S., representing a significant milestone for the company as it will generate short term cash flows.

Peninsula has targeted 2012 to begin producing uranium from the Lance projects, and aims to become one of the largest producers of uranium in the U.S.

On June 17 Peninsula Energy upgraded the JORC Resource Estimate for the Lance uranium projects to 41.4 million pounds (Mlbs) uranium (U3O8).

Peninsula has built a globally significant uranium resource and project at Lance. The upgrade added to the Indicated and Measured Resource and enhances confidence in the project.

Importantly, the Definitive Feasibility Study (DFS) incorporating the updated resource calculation is expected shortly.

Originally published at: http://www.proactiveinvestors.com.au/companies/news/17485/peninsula-energy-moves-closer-to-technical-and-environmental-review-at-ross-uranium-project--17485.html