NexGen CEO optimistic about the future of the Rook I uranium project

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The chief executive of a company looking to build a large uranium mine in northern Saskatchewan says it’s getting closer to getting final approval for the project.

Leigh Curyer, who founded NexGen Energy Ltd. in 2011, said the company has been given provincial approval for its Rook I project and has also reached agreements with local governments around the site. But he said environmental approval from the federal government is still pending, though that process is starting to wrap up.

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“We very recently just submitted our responses to the remaining 49 aspects to close out from the federal permitting process,” he said.

Curyer said the responses primarily consist of clarifying certain aspects of the company’s environmental impact study, which was the same study the company presented to the Government of Saskatchewan to win provincial approval.

Overall, he said NexGen is very optimistic that it will be granted approval to go forward with the mine.

“It’s just really a question of when,” he said.

After NexGen gets final regulatory approval, Curyer said it is ready to begin work right away. He added that work is already going on in the area, specifically gravel crushing to allow for roads and work sites to be built.

“We’re ready,” he said. “The moment we have approval, we will literally the very next week (be) commencing construction of the project.”

It is expected that it will take 40 months of work before the mine is able to produce uranium. Once it is granted final approval, NexGen will be licensed to extract up to 13 million pounds of uranium per year. The mine has also been given a license to operate for 24 years by the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission.

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Curyer said the company expects the mine to create around 1,400 direct jobs while generating more than $6-billion worth of royalties for the provincial government over 10 years.

“It’s an incredibly powerful project economically,” he said.

Originally, construction of the Rook I project was pegged at a cost of around $1.3 billion. But with inflation and other additional costs, Curyer said the total price tag is now closer to $2 billion.

NexGen has been working on the project since February of 2014. During this time, Curyer said the company has been able to build relationships with local governments in the area.

The company has signed impact agreements with three Indigenous communities: Clearwater River Dene Nation, Buffalo River Dene Nation and Birch Narrows Dene Nation. The company has also signed an agreement with Métis Nation-Saskatchewan Western Region 2, which represents Métis people in the impacted area. 

Curyer said the agreements provide for employment and training opportunities, along with sourcing for local companies while also respecting traditional land use.

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The mining industry, and particularly the uranium sector, has historically been a major employer in Saskatchewan’s north, where opportunities for employment are not always readily available. The industry has also been a major employer of Indigenous people, with Indigenous people comprising 50 per cent of the workforce at some mines.

The Rook I site currently has about 35 workers, more than 90 per cent of whom are from the local area. He added that the company crushing gravel at the site is owned by the Clearwater River Dene Nation.

The need for more uranium has been growing recently, partly because of Russia’s war on Ukraine and partly because of renewed interest in nuclear power. Curyer said NexGen has been talking with potential buyers in several countries.

“We’re currently negotiating with a number of utilities based in the U.S and Europe and Japan, the three current regions that we are in very advanced negotiations with,” he said.

Curyer said NexGen is waiting on final approval from the federal government to begin work on the mine before finalizing any supply agreements.

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Historically, the market for uranium and nuclear fuel has been wide open. But sanctions on Russia, especially in the United States, will limit the trade of uranium and nuclear fuel from that country.

Curyer said this is a big change for the industry and has generated interest in the Rook I project, especially from potential customers in the U.S., because Canada is considered a stable jurisdiction.

“We are entering a new era for the market in nuclear fuel, which I believe is unprecedented,” he said.

mhansen@postmedia.com

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