Caterpillar sales down again, almost three straight years

Financial Post reports Global X Uranium ETF (NYSE:URA) says that the uranium sector is showing some signs of improvement after the Japanese nuclear incident.

Namibia's Ministry of Environment and Tourism has granted environmental approval for the linear infrastructure for the proposed Husab uranium project to Extract Resources subsidiary Swakop Uranium. The approval, covering access roads, electricity, telecommunications and water supply, is the final environmental approval needed for the project. The project mining area received environmental approval in January. Extract is now waiting to receive a mining licence from the Ministry of Mines, according to managing director Jonathan Leslie.

Canada’s mining industry continues to rally from the recent global recession, with this year’s production currently exceeding that of 2010, reports government department Natural Resources Canada (NRCan).

Africa's biggest gold miner AngloGold Ashanti said on Friday it would acquire a 19.79 percent stake in Canadian gold and uranium producer First Uranium Corp for $30 million. AngloGold said it would buy the stake, which consists of 47 million shares and priced at $0.64 a share, from South Africa's Village Main Reef Gold Mining.

Paladin Energy, the ASX- and TSX-quoted uranium miner, said on Wednesday that production for the year ended June rose 32% to 5.7-million pounds, but was lower than expected because of heavy rainfall at its Namibian mine and “mechanical issues” at the Kayelekera operation in Malawi.

Black Range Minerals announced on Wednesday that the indicated and inferred resource for the combined Hansen/Taylor Ranch Uranium Project comprises of 68.9 Mt at 0.060% U3O8 for 90.9 million pounds of U3O8, representing a 51% increase in the number of pounds of U3O8 previously reported for the Taylor Ranch Uranium Project.

Western Japan's electricity supply will fall 1.2 percent short of forecast peak demand for August, as five regional utilities' efforts to boost supply could not offset unplanned shutdowns this month of a nuclear reactor and a coal-fired plant, Japan's trade ministry said on Wednesday. Image of Fukushima Daiichi NPP in 2002 is from KEI. 

The West Australian Government has announced it will levy a 5 per cent royalty on uranium and magnetite iron ore. By 2014-15 the State Government expects to reap more than $160 million a year from magnetite royalties and $28 million from uranium.

The head of the Atomic Energy Commission said a four-year study has indicated that the Tumalapalli mine near the Indian state capital Hyderbad, which is scheduled to begin operating later this year, could produce up to 150,000 tons of uranium. The Daily Telegraph reports: "It's confirmed that the mine has 49,000 tons and there are indications that the total quantity could be three times that amount," Mr Banerjee said on a visit to a nuclear plant in the western state of Rajasthan on Monday. If that is the case, it will become the largest uranium mine in the world, he added.