Alba Minerals Acquires Historic Vanadium-Uranium Project

Junior energy explorer Alba Minerals (TSX:AA,OTC Pink:AXVEF) has acquired the Torado uranium and vanadium project located in Colorado as part of its deal with Journey Exploration. The transaction will see Alba assume control of five properties. 

Within the Torado asset lies the Lyons property, home to a number of historic mines.

That particular area of Colorado has a long history with energy exploration and production. Just 19 kilometers from Torado is the La Sal complex, which is home to Energy Fuels (TSX:EFR,NYSEMKT:UUUU), one of the largest uranium producers in the US.

A majority of the historic mining in the area happened during the 1950s.

“This property has seen extensive exploration and development work, which began in 1913 and has been intermittent since that time,” the company announcement notes.

“The primary commodity of interest historically has been uranium. Vanadium was also recovered as a byproduct and sometimes as the primary element depending on demand at the time.”

Demand for vanadium has spiked in the last two years as vanadium redox flow batteries are being deployed and discussed as large-scale energy storage solutions.

Prior to 1946, vanadium production from the La Sal Creek district — which includes the Lyons property — was 11,440 tonnes containing 220,788 kilograms of vanadium pentoxide.

Uranium mining in the US has been a major topic of focus in the energy sector since the beginning of the year. Anticipation that the Trump government will implement a 25 percent domestic uranium quota to address issues of national security around uranium imports has been top of mind.

If a quota is implemented, the US currently does not have enough domestic producers to meet demand. The country is the largest consumer of uranium, spending more than US$2 billion annually to import the U3O8 and power electrical plants.

The development of projects like Alba’s Torado property will become increasingly important if the country wants to assure its energy security.

Alba’s acquisition of the property formerly owned by Journey Exploration is subject to TSX approval.

On Tuesday (May 14), shares of Alba were down 4.55 percent, trading at C$0.10.

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Securities Disclosure: I, Georgia Williams, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

Editorial Disclosure: Energy Fuels is a client of the Investing News Network. This article is not paid-for content.