Mining’s old guard needs strong medicine
A new report details subpar investor returns in the mining industry over the last decade, particularly big cap diversified companies which have not adapted to new realities.
Denison Mines Corp. (TSX: DML) announced on Monday its common shares will be added to the S&P/TSX Composite Index – the headline index for the Canadian equity market – prior to the open of trading on March 22.
“Inclusion in the S&P/TSX Composite Index is a notable achievement and comes at a time when investor interest in nuclear energy and the global energy transition has increased significantly,” Denison president and CEO David Cates said in a news release.
Denison is currently focused on building a large uranium project in the Athabasca Basin region of northern Saskatchewan. The Wheeler River project, consisting of two high-grade uranium deposits, contains an estimated 109.4 million pounds U3O8 in probable mineral reserves, making it the largest undeveloped uranium project in the eastern portion of the Athabasca Basin.
The company also has an interest in the McClean Lake joint venture, which includes several uranium deposits and the McClean Lake uranium mill. The mill is contracted to process the ore from Cameco’s Cigar Lake mine under a toll milling agreement.
“Our company is well positioned to support the clean energy transition through the future development of our flagship Wheeler River uranium project in the Athabasca Basin region of northern Saskatchewan,” Cates said.
“Wheeler River’s Phoenix deposit has the potential to compete with the lowest cost uranium mines and development projects, while being designed as one of the most environmentally sustainable mining operations in the world – owing largely to our planned application of the in-situ recovery mining method and the expected absence of conventional tailings generation.”
Shares of Denison Mines jumped by more than 16% following the stock’s inclusion in the S&P/TSX Composite Index – the most widely quoted benchmark for the Canadian equity market.
The uranium miner has a market capitalization of about C$1.15 billion.
