Lake Maitland

The Lake Maitland uranium deposit is located on the dried-up salt lake Lake Maitland, about 100 kilometers southeast of Wiluna in Western Australia. There, the first active uranium mining in Western Australia is to be operated from 2012 onwards.

Mining plan

Is the most advanced uranium project in Western Australia, the Lake Maintland - Uranium Project, which is being promoted by the Canadian company Mega Uranium and its production will start in 2012 at the lake. It could be the first active uranium mining project in Western Australia. It is intended to produce 750 t U3O8 per year.

Uranium mining at Lake Maitland is one of three projects in Western Australia, adjacent to the Centipede - Lake Way uranium deposit, starting in 2013 with the uranium mining, and the Yeelirrie - uranium deposit of the BHP Billiton, which will start the breakdown from 2014. The three mining projects are located within 100 km from Wiluna.

Uranium mining project

By 2008, the Government of Western Australia had a uranium mining ban imposed, which was canceled after the electoral defeat of the Australian Labor Party from the Liberal Party. Against this political decision, there were protests from the Anti- Nuclear Alliance of Western Australia The local Aboriginal criticized the government and demanded guarantees for their land and the animals living there. The projects led to protests from the Anti- Nuclear Alliance of Western Australia, which wants to prevent degradation.

The uranium deposit at Lake Maitland was discovered in 1972 by the Asarco Australia. The deposit has been explored to a limited extent in the 1980s, because there were different views of the owners on the use of the deposit and change of ownership at the time.

After several holes through the Redford Ltd. in 2005, this was acquired by Mega Uranium in December 2006, which undertook further drilling and exploration in the years 2007 to 2008. The future mining area is located far away and benefits from existing infrastructure of other mines in the region. It lies about 30 km north of Bronzewing gold mine.

35% of the equity shares are held by the Japanese consortium Japan Australia Uranium Resources Development Co ( JAURD ). JAURD heard the Japanese power companies Kansai Electric Power, Kyushu Electric Power and Shikoku Electric Power, jointly operate the nuclear power plants in Japan.

The deposit is to be operated 10 years.