By Mary Bailey
Australian-listed Bannerman Energy has selected Wood plc (Aberdeen, U.K.) to deliver the detailed design phase of its flagship uranium project, Etango, in Namibia.
Wood has supported Bannerman on the Etango project for over a decade, delivering two feasibility studies and one pre-feasibility study on the development.
The Etango project is one of the world’s largest undeveloped uranium assets in Namibia’s established uranium mining jurisdiction. Wood will apply its hydrometallurgical expertise in the uranium sector to design the next development phase.
Jim Shaughnessy, President of Minerals, Metals, & Life Sciences at Wood, said: “Uranium remains an essential material in the world’s energy transition, with demand expected to increase by nearly 30% from 2023 to 2030.
“We’re delighted to continue working with our long-standing partner, Bannerman, on the next phase of this globally significant uranium project. Importantly, our front-end engineering design (FEED) focused on sustainable solutions for development, and we look forward to implementing these in the project’s next phase.”
The Etango-8 definitive feasibility study in 2022 confirmed that an eight million tons per year (Mtpa) throughput rate was technically and commercially viable.
A further scoping survey in 2024 confirmed that the ore body of the mine could support an expansion case of 16 Mtpa (XP) operation or an extension case extending the life of the mine (XT) from 15 years to 27 years. The Etango-8 project is progressing toward a final investment decision (FID), which is expected later this year.
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