Bannerman Releases December 2012 Quarterly Activities Report
PERTH, AUSTRALIA -- (Marketwire) -- 01/30/13 -- Bannerman Resources Limited (TSX: BAN)(ASX: BMN)(NAMIBIAN: BMN) ("Bannerman") is pleased to announce highlights from its December 2012 Quarterly Activities Report released today. The full report is available on Bannerman's website at www.bannermanresources.com and on SEDAR (www.sedar.com).
HIGHLIGHTS
-- Significant events that are likely to positively impact on U3O8 spot
price:
-- Construction commenced on 5 new reactors in China during the quarter
-- Pro-nuclear Liberal Democratic Party returned to Government in Japan
-- The December quarter ended with an upward trending spot price for U3O8
to US$43.50
-- Bannerman Director Mr Ronnie Beevor assumed the role of Chairman
following the Company's AGM on 21 November 2012
-- Continued review of overhead costs has resulted in a further significant
reduction in quarterly expenditure
-- The period ending 31 December 2012 represents in excess of 2 years that
the Company's staff and contractors have operated without injury
-- Cash of A$5.8 million as at 31 December 2012
During the December quarter, two significant events with likely far reaching positive impacts on the medium to long-term uranium price occurred in China and Japan, the world's second and third largest economies respectively.
In China, the Government outlined plans in October to commit to a number of nuclear projects in each of the following 5 years. The commissioning of a new reactor in late December and the start to construction of a further five new reactors (typically 1GW output each), forms part of the Chinese Government's 5-year plan to increase nuclear power generation from 12.5Gw to 40Gw.
In Japan, the pro-nuclear Liberal Democratic Party was voted in on the back of a landslide victory and has subsequently stated that not only do they plan to restart their dormant reactors but also consider building new reactors incorporating latest technologies. Japan's lack of alternative energy generation infrastructure has severely hampered that country's industrial complex since the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami forced the closure of all of its nuclear power generators.
In addition, the 1993 Highly Enriched Uranium ('HEU') agreement between Russia and the USA is scheduled to expire at the end of 2013 and is unlikely to be renewed. This will significantly decrease uranium supply with a resultant positive impact on the uranium price through and beyond 2013.
The upward trend in the spot uranium price reflects a growing realisation that the long-term commitment to nuclear power by a number of key Asian countries remains, impacting the demand-side of the equation, whilst ongoing project development deferrals and the end of the Highly Enriched Uranium (HEU) program will ultimately result in a substantial supply-side shortfall.
Shareholders in Bannerman are well placed to capitalise on a rising uranium price with the Etango Project regarded as one of the very few globally significant uranium projects that can realistically be in production in the medium term.
Len Jubber, Chief Executive Officer
January 30, 2013
About Bannerman - Bannerman Resources Limited is an exploration and development company with uranium interests in Namibia, a southern African country which is a premier uranium mining jurisdiction. Bannerman's principal asset is its 80%-owned Etango Project situated southwest of Rio Tinto's Rossing uranium mine and to the west of Paladin Energy's Langer-Heinrich mine. Etango is one of the world's largest undeveloped uranium deposits. Bannerman is focused on the development of a large open pit uranium operation at Etango. More information is available on Bannerman's website at www.bannermanresources.com.
Technical and Cautionary Disclosures
Certain disclosures in this report, including management's assessment of Bannerman's plans and projects, constitute forward looking statements that are subject to numerous risks, uncertainties and other factors relating to Bannerman's operation as a mineral development company that may cause future results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in such forward-looking statements. Full descriptions of these risks can be found in Bannerman's various statutory reports, including its Annual Information Form available on the SEDAR website, www.sedar.com. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Bannerman expressly disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
Mineral Resources that are not Ore Reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability.
Bannerman Resources Limited ("Bannerman") manages its drilling and assaying activities in accordance with industry standard quality assurance/quality control (QA/QC) procedures. Samples are collected by Bannerman personnel and prepared in accordance with specified procedures at the relevant assay laboratories. Drill samples were analysed for uranium by the Bureau Veritas Laboratory in Swakopmund, Namibia. Bureau Veritas is an International Laboratory Group with operations in 140 countries, including Ultratrace and Amdel in Australia. Assay QA/QC involves the use of assay standards (sourced from African Mineral Standards (AMIS) in Johannesburg, made from Bannerman pulp rejects and cross-checked through umpire laboratories for which the round robin reports are available), field duplicates, blanks and barren quartz flushes. A third party "umpire" laboratory (Genalysis in Perth) is used to cross-check and validate approximately 5% of the assay results in accordance with standard procedures. Sample coarse rejects are retained and approximately 5% of samples are re-submitted for further assay verification. All sample pulps, half-core and rock-chip samples are retained at Bannerman's Goanikontes Warehouse Facility (GWS) on site.
The information in this report relating to the Ore Reserves of the Etango Project is based on information compiled or reviewed by Mr Harry Warries, a full time employee of Coffey Mining Pty Ltd. Mr Warries is a Fellow of The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy and has sufficient experience relevant to the style of mineralisation and types of deposits under consideration and to the activity which is being undertaken to qualify as a Competent Person as defined in the 2004 Edition of the "Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves", and is an independent consultant to Bannerman and a Qualified Person as defined by Canadian National Instrument 43-101. Mr Warries consents, and provides corporate consent for Coffey Mining Pty Ltd, to the inclusion in this report of the matters based on his information in the form and context in which it appears.
ABN 34 113 017 128
Contacts:
Bannerman Resources Limited
Len Jubber
Chief Executive Officer
+61 (0)8 9381 1436
www.bannermanresources.com
Media:
David Tasker
Professional Public Relations
+61 (0)433 112 936
david.tasker@ppr.com.au
Spyros Karellas
Investor Relations
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
+1 416 800 8921
spyros@pinnaclecapitalmarkets.ca