Name of the Project
Etango-8 uranium project.

Location
Erongo region, about 30 km east-southeast of Swakopmund, in Namibia. 

Project Owner/s
Australian- and Namibian-listed uranium development company Bannerman Energy, through its 95%-owned subsidiary Bannerman Mining Resources. The remaining 5% is owned by Namibian charitable body One Economy Foundation.

Project Description
A definitive feasibility study was completed in December 2022. This confirmed to a definitive level the strong technical and economic viability of conventional openpit mining and heap-leach processing of the Etango deposit as an eight-million-tonne-a-year throughput operation – for average output of 3.5-million pounds a year of triuranium octoxide (U3O8).

In March 2024, a scoping study showed the capacity to increase production to 6.7-million pounds a year of U3O8.

Total production is estimated at more than 15 years, with total production estimated at 52.6-million pounds of U3O8.

Two future-phase development options have been proposed: 

• an expansion of mine and plant throughput to 16-million tonnes a year – Etango-XP; and 
• a life-of-mine extension with mine and plant throughput maintained at eight-million tonnes a year – Etango-XT.

Potential Job Creation
More than 560 contract personnel are actively working on site.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
The project has an estimated after-tax net present value, at an 8% discount rate, of $390-million and an internal rate of return of 21.1%.

Capital Expenditure
Preproduction capital expenditure is estimated at $353.5-millon.

Planned Start/End Date
A final investment decision (FID) is targeted in 2025.

Latest Developments
Early works are advancing on budget and on schedule. As of March 26, the 24-month bulk earthworks contract was about 66.5% complete, with work centred on the heap-leach pads, ponds and wet plant terraces. 

Blasting, crushing and screening of heap-leach drainage aggregate were also progressing to plan, with about 24% of the total material requirement completed. 

Concrete works for the primary crusher, stockpile tunnel, fine-ore silo and associated dry plant infrastructure had reached about 32% completion, with 5 509 m³ of concrete poured. 

Phase 1 of the permanent water supply pipeline was about 70% complete and ahead of schedule, while a definitive power supply agreement had been signed with NamPower. Design of the acid storage and handling facility at Walvis Bay was about 39% complete.

Detailed engineering also continued to advance. Civil and mechanical design for the dry plant was about 93% complete, with concrete drawings already issued for construction, and structural steel drawings advancing for tender in the second quarter of 2026. 

Wet plant engineering was about 23% complete. Current work is focusing on optimisation testwork ahead of Phase 3 concrete construction and later structural, mechanical, piping and platework works. 

Bannerman has said the project remains on track for a targeted final investment decision and full-scale construction launch later in 2026. 

Key Contracts, Suppliers and Consultants
Wood plc (study lead – process plant design and related infrastructure, plant capital and operating cost estimates); Qubeka Mining Consultants (geology review, mineral reserve estimate, mine planning and mining cost estimates); Snowden Optiro (mineral resource estimate); Creo Engineering Solutions (engineering support for Bannerman owner’s team); MineTechnics (openpit geotechnical parameters); Lund Consulting Engineers (water supply infrastructure); Addiza Energy Solutions (external electrical supply infrastructure); A.Speiser Environmental Consultants (environmental-impact assessments); Namisun Environmental Projects & Developments (conceptual mine closure plan); AN Construction (pumpstation foundations and pipe bridge over the Swakop river); and Tulela Mining & Construction (blasting, crushing and screening of heap leach drainage aggregate).

Contact Details for Project Information
Bannerman Energy, tel +61 8 9381 1436 or email info@bmnenergy.com.