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Seminar on Governance of Uranium Production Activities Copenhagen, Denmark 27-28 May 2014

Seminar on Governance of Uranium Production Activities Copenhagen, Denmark 27-28 May 2014 Background to mining and concentrating uranium ore Peter Woods Team Leader, Raw Materials and Resources Subprogramme International Atomic Energy Agency, Vienna, Austria

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Seminar on Governance of Uranium Production Activities Copenhagen, Denmark 27-28 May 2014

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  1. Seminar on Governance of Uranium Production Activities Copenhagen, Denmark 27-28 May 2014 Background to mining and concentrating uranium ore Peter Woods Team Leader, Raw Materials and Resources Subprogramme International Atomic Energy Agency, Vienna, Austria Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Materials Section

  2. Uranium Production Cycle • The Uranium Production Cycle (UPC) comprises all the activities involved in the production of natural uranium for use as fuel in nuclear energy production and similar applications. • Simply described, it includes uranium exploration, feasibility studies, development of production facilities, mining and processing, decommissioning and remediation. Management of associated environmental issues is an integral part of the whole cycle. P. Woods - U general talk, Copenhagen Seminar May 2014

  3. The nuclear fuel cycle and the UPC P. Woods - U general talk, Copenhagen Seminar May 2014

  4. Uranium Production Cycle Stewardship P. Woods - U general talk, Copenhagen Seminar May 2014

  5. Types of uranium deposits • 15 Geological Types of Uranium Deposits* have been identified – some of the main ones of interest are: • Sandstone deposits (all over the word) • Proterozoic Unconformity-related deposits (Canada, Australia) • Polymetallic hematite breccia complex deposits (only Olympic Dam (Australia) – is currently producing U) • Metamorphite deposits (all over the word) • Intrusive deposits (e.g. Namibia, Greenland) * proposed by IAEA 2012 P. Woods - U general talk, Copenhagen Seminar May 2014

  6. Operational timeline for mine life cycle activities Regulatory Requirements Residues, Wastes & Impacts Eng. Options Planning Site, Design & Const. Waste Mgt. Plan Mgt. Operation Decom., Closure & Controls Monitoring and Surveillance Quality Assurance Health and Safety Handover & Stewardship Construction and Operation Exploration Feasibility & development Decommissioning & Remediation P. Woods - U general talk, Copenhagen Seminar May 2014

  7. Uranium Production • In 2012 total world uranium production from mines was (WNA):58,394 tonnes U(68,847 t U3O8) (~151 M lbs U3O8) c.f. 2011 54,610 t U c.f. 2010 53,663 t U • Which represented ~88% of the demand of 65,908 t U for power generation (WNA 2012) Kazakh yellowcake (uranium ore concentrate) Source: KazAtomProm P. Woods - U general talk, Copenhagen Seminar May 2014

  8. Uranium Producing Countries During the past 50 years commercially viable deposits of uranium have been extensively exploited in the following countries : Kazakhstan (1) Canada (2) Australia (3) Niger (4) Namibia (5) Uzbekistan (6) Russia (7)  USA Ukraine China South Africa Brazil India Czech Republic Romania Pakistan Germany Madagascar Argentina France Portugal Gabon Spain DR Congo Bulgaria Hungary Former East Germany ( ) indicates position in world production 2012 • Many other smaller mines operated that were strategic, not economic P. Woods - U general talk, Copenhagen Seminar May 2014

  9. 2009 - 2012 Uranium Production (t U) 2012 production as U 58 394 tonnes All data from World Nuclear Association P. Woods - U general talk, Copenhagen Seminar May 2014

  10. The road to uranium production • Uranium is where you find it • Suitable policies and legal/regulatory arrangements need to developed, if not already established • Social, regulatory, environmental, safety and security aspects should be considered at all stages of a project, from pre-exploration to development and eventual closure • Financial aspects must also considered; no-one wants a company to go bankrupt part-way through a project P. Woods - U general talk, Copenhagen Seminar May 2014

  11. First steps • Desktop studies • Examination of regional data, government reports, old exploration reports • Non-invasive exploration methods • e.g. remote sensing data, aerial/satellite photography, aerial geophysical surveys, simple land-based geophysical methods P. Woods - U general talk, Copenhagen Seminar May 2014

  12. Field geological survey P. Woods - U general talk, Copenhagen Seminar May 2014

  13. Exploration drilling Heathgate Resources Ltd (Australia) Cameco Resources Ltd (Australia) Mesteña Uranium, LLC (USA) Greenland Minerals and Energy Ltd P. Woods - U general talk, Copenhagen Seminar May 2014

  14. Feasibility, Planning and Design • The economic feasibility is established after more detailed data collection on the ore body • Also other data are collected for the preparation of an Environmental Impact Assessment, including environmental, social and technical aspects • Project is designed and plans drawn up • Early document show initial mine plan, etc. • Most projects do not develop exactly as planned! P. Woods - U general talk, Copenhagen Seminar May 2014

  15. Mining operations producing uranium as a by-product • Copper mining (Australia; formerly South Africa and the USA). • Phosphate rock mining (and production of phosphoric acid) (USA) • Gold mining (South Africa) • Possibly in the future (e.g. Morocco, Jordan (phosphate), Finland (Ni-Zn), Chile, Zambia (Cu), Australia/Greenland (Rare Earth projects)) Former uranium extraction plant at a phosphate fertiliser plant, Florida USA. P.Waggitt P. Woods - U general talk, Copenhagen Seminar May 2014

  16. Uranium Mining Methods – Open pit Open pit / surface excavations • ~25% produced this way currently • Relatively large footprint at the surface • Large stockpiles of waste rock, sub-economic ore and/or overburden • Potential for waste water, drainage and seepage to cause environmental problems • May be a possibility for in-pit disposal of tailings &/or waste rock Above: Rössing U mine, Namibia, (P. Woods) Below: McClean Lake, Canada (Areva) P. Woods - U general talk, Copenhagen Seminar May 2014

  17. Other examples of Open Pits and a Processing Plant in cold climates Above: an ARMZ pit in Russia (web) Below: Talvivaara, Finland (IAEA file photo) Above: Sue B Pit, Canada (Areva) P. Woods - U general talk, Copenhagen Seminar May 2014

  18. Uranium Mining Methods – Underground Underground mining • ~30% of currently mined uranium production • Much smaller waste rock production volumes, frequently very little at the surface • Smaller infrastructure footprint at the surface • May be possible to dispose of much of the waste underground as backfill in the workings • Some processing may be possible underground, e.g. McArthur River Canada Above: McArthur River uranium mine, Canada Below: Rabbit lake mine, Canada (Cameco) P. Woods - U general talk, Copenhagen Seminar May 2014

  19. In-situ Leach Mining (ISL) • Sometimes may be called solution mining or ISR (in situ recovery) • ~35% of world mined uranium was produced this way recently • Can be acid or alkali leach solution • Very small volume of waste generation • Potential to produce waste sludges and evaporite salts of high specific activity but small volume, depending on details of the extraction process • Limited surface disturbance Top: Beverley ISL mine, Australia Bottom: Straz ISL mine Czech Republic P. Woods - U general talk, Copenhagen Seminar May 2014

  20. Uranium recovery from ore • Crushing (not ISL) • Grinding (not ISL or heap leach) • Leaching – acid or alkaline • Liquid-solid separation (not ISL or heap leach) • Purification and concentration • Adsorption (ion exchange) or solvent extraction • Precipitation, drying (plus calcining at some large mines • Packing & dispatch Uranium mill, Ranger mine, Australia P. Woods - U general talk, Copenhagen Seminar May 2014

  21. Uranium recovery (ISL) ISL plant, Alta Mesa, USA Part of ion exchange complex Plant seen from public road (taken through fence) P. Woods - U general talk, Copenhagen Seminar May 2014

  22. Packing Yellowcake in the packing plant at Beverley (Heathgate Resources) • Product is called “yellow cake” but can be any uranium concentrate: UO4, U3O8, ADU, MgDU, uranyl peroxide etc • These products may be coloured reddish, orange to yellow naturally; or dark green to grey or almost black when calcined (in a furnace) • Packed in drums & shipped to conversion plant Calcined U3O8(Cameco) Yellowcake in drums, (Kazatomprom) P. Woods - U general talk, Copenhagen Seminar May 2014

  23. Loading containers Drum label, Australia Drums of U3O8 being loaded,Cameco Yellowcake drums awaiting shipment, Czech Republic P. Woods - U general talk, Copenhagen Seminar May 2014

  24. Transport - containers P. Woods - U general talk, Copenhagen Seminar May 2014

  25. Transport – road, rail, sea P. Woods - U general talk, Copenhagen Seminar May 2014

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