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MARCH 6—20, 2023 / VOL. 109 ISSUE 5 / GLOBAL MINING NEWS • SINCE 1915 / $5.25 / WWW.NORTHERNMINER.COM
Kelly Earle and Vincent Metcalfe named Young Mining Professionals of the Year AWARDS
| Ceremony to take place on Mar. 4 in Toronto
T
Kelly Earle
Uranium market headed towards a supply shortfall
Vincent Metcalfe
BY NORM TOLLINSKY
he winners of the Young Mining Professionals’ (YMP) Eira Thomas and Peter Munk Awards for 2023 are Kelly Earle of Vancouver and Vincent Metcalfe of Montreal. The YMP awards recognize two mining professionals under the age of 40, who demonstrate exceptional leadership skills and innovative thinking for their companies and shareholders. The awards will be presented to Earle and Metcalfe at the YMP Awards Cocktail Reception on Saturday, Mar. 4, 5 pm, at the Shangri-La Hotel in downtown Toronto as the kick-off event for the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada’s 2023 Mineral Exploration and Mining Convention, which takes place from Mar. 5-8 at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. Tickets for the awards ceremony and reception are available at www. youngminingprofessionals.com. Nominees from a public submissions process were judged by a panel of representatives from YMP chapters in Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Sudbury, London (U.K.), Perth, Brisbane, Arizona, Switzerland and by The Northern Miner. Sponsoring the awards this year are Barrick Gold (TSX: ABX; NYSE: GOLD), Cassels, Rio Tinto (NYSE: RIO; LSE: RIO; ASX: RIO), KPMG and The Northern Miner.
Kelly Earle Kelly Earle, the 2023 Eira Thomas Award winner, is an investor relations and corporate development professional with a Bachelor of Science degree in Geology from the University of British Columbia. Originally from Waterloo, Ont., Earle operates her own company in Vancouver, K. Earle Consulting, providing a wide range of services to junior mining companies. She also spent seven years working for Skeena Resources (TSX: SKE; NYSE: SKE) as senior vice-president of corporate development and played a key role in advancing the company’s revival of the Eskay Creek gold and silver mine in British Columbia’s Golden Triangle. Earle always knew she wanted to pursue a career in the sciences but began her university studies in Environmental Toxicology at the See YMP / 8
| Geopolitical and security of supply fears drive rise in term contracting ANALYSIS
BY DAVID A. TALBOT
A
fter a dozen years in the doldrums, uranium prices are on the rise, supported by real growing demand and support for nuclear power, as well as geopolitical concerns. While in the recent past, support for nuclear power was based on environmental considerations as well as its ability to provide reliable and cheap baseload energy, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine shifted the geopolitical landscape from these considerations to one of energy security. Western government policies have pivoted in response and the sector is gaining momentum. Uranium prices, on the rise for the past four years, have accelerated, and perhaps as importantly, utilities are returning to long-term contracting. Rising uranium demand and diminishing secondary supplies have spurred an increase in production. Rising long term prices and increased contract volumes are needed to provide the necessary price incentive for uranium producers to bring production back online or start up new projects. That said, uranium supplies remain tight and further price appreciation is anticipated. Mine supply is forecast at 143 million lb. U3O8 versus 181 million lb. of demand for 2023 by UxC, leaving a notable gap in mine supply that must be filled by declining secondary supplies. Geopolitics Nuclear power and uranium markets are heavily impacted by geopolitical concerns. This is largely due to Russia’s influence over the nuclear fuel (uranium, conversion, enrichment) and gas supply chains. The war has contributed greatly to Europe’s soaring power and fuel prices, causing some countries to accelerate new nuclear power plants (France, Poland) and has reversed or at least stalled closure plans in others (Germany, Belgium). Bloomberg noted that the EU has spent an additional $1 trillion on energy since the war began, impacting businesses and consumers. As the war drags on, we expect that existing nuclear utilities will scramble to cover their uranium
SKARN ASSOCIATES ON THE ENERGY TRANSITION’S TIPPING POINT / 20
requirements. Security of supply concerns might overshadow economics over the next few years, such that we might see additional funding of domestic nuclear programs, R&D, and uranium industry support. Support for nuclear power is also growing within the United States and European Union, and elsewhere. Energy security of supply and environmental considerations are changing government policy and investor sentiment. Policy decisions by governments over the last couple of years has started to translate into new nuclear reactor announcements, builds, life extensions and the cancellation of some closures. This is driving real nuclear power demand growth and higher uranium prices that might help us emerge from a dozen years of low uranium prices. In the U.S., the 2021 Infrastructure Bill and 2022 Inflation ReducSee URANIUM / 14 PM40069240