The Tony Sage-chaired Cauldron Energy is lobbying the state government to ignore the advice of the mining warden and allow the company to explore for uranium at pastoral leases on Andrew Forrest's Minderoo Station in the Pilbara.
The mining warden has recommended that Cauldron’s application for three uranium exploration licences at Minderoo be refused, on the grounds that the company did not have sufficient funds to undertake the work.
The prospective licences are located adjacent to Cauldron’s Yanrey uranium project, which includes the Bennet Well deposit.
Exploration at Bennet Well to date has uncovered a total inferred and indicated JORC compliant resource of 15.7 million pounds of uranium at 270 ppm, with a 150 ppm cut-off.
Mr Sage said he would urge Mines and Petroleum Minister Bill Marmion to not follow the advice.
“It is critical that the warden found that, based on the detailed independent expert advice led by Cauldron, exploration could be carried out on the pastoral lease with appropriate conditions,” Mr Sage said in a statement.
“While the warden found the company does not have the financial capacity to undertake the proposed exploration at the time of the hearing, the company remains confident it is able to raise funds in order to carry out future exploration."
Mr Sage also told shareholders the decision would not hinder the company’s operations at the Yanrey uranium project.
“The applications were for extension of ground at the Yanrey project and our current ground at Yanrey remains unaffected,” he said.
At close of trade today, Cauldron Energy shares were steady at 9.2 cents.
