LEWISVILLE, Texas–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Uranium Resources, Inc. (NASDAQ: URRE) (URI), today provided an update on the Company’s activities and its liquidity position for the second quarter of 2011 as well as its strategy and outlook.
“The feasibility study is moving along as planned and we are evaluating various scenarios specific to our priority production property, Church Rock Section 8 which has 6.5 million pounds of in-place mineralized uranium material. We are planning on accelerating our engineering activities in order to stay on target.”
Los Finados Exploration Project Continues to Move Forward
URI’s objectives in Texas are to explore for and develop a larger reserve base, advance current properties through licensing and permitting, lease additional targeted properties and work with its customers to redefine the terms of its sales agreements to enable better margins and greater likelihood of returning to production in Texas.
Don Ewigleben, President and CEO of URI, commented, “Less than ideal drilling conditions are resulting in somewhat higher than expected costs thereby reducing the number of potential holes drilled in the first phase. Nonetheless, we are still on track to have the drilling for the first phase completed by the end of September. As we have noted previously, based on water sampling tests, we believe this green field exploration site should be an excellent uranium prospect.”
Feasibility Study Progressing in New Mexico
URI’s focus in New Mexico is on the completion of its feasibility study to advance its Churchrock/Crownpoint project. The evaluation includes the economic analysis and operating requirements for the in situ recovery of its uranium assets that are amenable to this lower cost mining method which includes the wellfields, satellite plants and a central processing plant at Crownpoint.
Mr. Ewigleben, noted, “The feasibility study is moving along as planned and we are evaluating various scenarios specific to our priority production property, Church Rock Section 8 which has 6.5 million pounds of in-place mineralized uranium material. We are planning on accelerating our engineering activities in order to stay on target.”
Liquidity Position
Cash at June 30, 2011 was $8.2 million compared with $11.1 million at March 31, 2011 and $15.4 million at the end of 2010. The decrease from the sequential first quarter reflects ongoing reclamation activities in Texas, the costs associated with the feasibility study and $500,000 of funding to collateralize URI’s financial surety obligations. URI’s cash balance at July 31, 2011 was approximately $7.3 million.
Mr. Ewigleben concluded, “Given our plan to accelerate our engineering activities for our Churchrock project and our cash requirements for the evaluation of various strategic initiatives, we are currently weighing various alternatives and evaluating the timing associated with the need to raise additional capital.”
Teleconference and Webcast
URI is hosting a conference call and webcast today at 11:00 a.m. ET. During the call, management will provide an update on URI’s strategies, outlook, and progress in advancing its Texas and New Mexico properties. A question-and-answer session will follow.
The URI conference call can be accessed by dialing (201) 689-8562. The live listen-only audio webcast can be monitored on the Company’s website at www.uraniumresources.com, where it will be archived afterwards. A transcript will also be placed on the Company’s website, once available.
To listen to the archived call, dial (858) 384-5517, and enter replay pin number 375633. The replay will be available from 2:00 p.m. ET the day of the teleconference until 11:59 p.m. ET Monday, August 22, 2011.
About Uranium Resources, Inc.
Uranium Resources Inc. explores for, develops and mines uranium. Since its incorporation in 1977, URI has produced over 8 million pounds of uranium by in-situ recovery (ISR) methods in the state of Texas where the Company currently has ISR mining projects. URI also has 183,000 acres of uranium mineral holdings and 101.4 million pounds of in-place mineralized uranium material in New Mexico and a NRC license to produce up to 1 million pounds of uranium per year. The Company acquired these properties over the past 20 years along with an extensive information database of historic mining logs and analysis. None of URI’s properties is currently in production.
URI’s strategy is to fully exploit its resource base in New Mexico and Texas, expand its asset base both within and outside of New Mexico and Texas, partner with larger mining companies that have undeveloped uranium or with junior mining companies that do not have the mining experience of URI, as well as provide restoration expertise to those that require the capability or lack the proficiency.
Uranium Resources routinely posts news and other information about the Company on its Web site at www.uraniumresources.com.