WA First Uranium Mine Secures Funding
Toro Energy has secured $10 million of cash from US private equity firm The Sentient Group to fund Western Australia first Uranium mine.
Managing over $US2.7 billion of resources investment, Sentient will inject $10m through a placement into Toro, followed by a further $10m injection to improve Toroís Wiluna project in WA and bring it to a Final Investment Decision as the uranium market recovers.
Transactions are expected to be finalised by mid-December, subject to approvals.
The second part of the package involves Toro acquiring Sentientís Canadian-based uranium assets, in a transaction valued at approximately A$18.9 million.
The Canadian assets include the high quality Matoush uranium exploration and development project in northern Quebec.
Wiluna is Toroís main priority, with the Company determined to deliver Western Australiaís first and Australiaís sixth uranium mine as soon as possible.
Under todayís transactions, Sentient will become a major shareholder in Toro, with an 18.9% stake, just behind the two largest, Oz Minerals (21.9%) and Mega Uranium (21.5%).
Toro Managing Director, Dr Vanessa Guthrie said, ìToro is pleased to have secured the Companyís financial position for the medium term and emerge with an expanded global uranium investments portfolio supported by a major new shareholder in Sentient.î
ìThis enables us to focus on bringing Wiluna into production in the expected emerging market supply gap and promoting the potential of the Wiluna uranium provinceî, she said.
Strategically, we also now have our first opportunity, when conditions prevail, to develop an expanded global uranium portfolio, with Canadian and North American markets support for the potential for uranium market growth in rising nuclear energy demand around the globe.î
ìWe welcome Sentient as a new significant shareholder in Toro, and look forward to working with its management to both improve the Wiluna Project as well as developing our global uranium portfolio aspirations.î
