Name of the Project
Wheeler River uranium project.

Location
The project is located in northern Saskatchewan, Canada.

Project Owner/s
The project is a joint venture (JV) between Denison (90%) and JCU (Canada) Exploration Company (10%).

Project Description
The Wheeler River project is the largest undeveloped uranium project in the eastern portion of the Athabasca basin.

A prefeasibility study on the project has evaluated the potential economic merit of co-developing the Phoenix and Gryphon deposits.

The Phoenix high-grade deposit has been designed as an in situ recovery (ISR) mining operation, with associated processing to a finished product occurring at a plant to be built on site at Wheeler River. The Gryphon deposit has been designed as an underground mining operation using a conventional long-hole mining approach, with mine production processed at the McClean Lake mill.

The Phoenix ISR and Gryphon underground operations together have probable mineral reserves of 109.4-million pounds of uranium (U₃O₈) from 1.39-million tonnes, comprising 59.7-million pounds of U3O8 from 141 000 t at 19.1% U₃O₈ for Phoenix and 49.7-million pounds of U₃O₈ from 1.26-million tonnes at 1.8% U₃O₈ for Gryphon.

The project has a mine life estimated at about 14 years, with average yearly production estimated at 7.8-million pounds of U₃O₈.

Potential Job Creation
Not stated.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
Wheeler River has a pretax net present value (NPV), at an 8% discount rate, of $1.31-billion and an internal rate of return (IRR) of 38.7%, with a payback of about 24 months.

Phoenix has a pretax NPV, at an 8% discount rate, of $930.4-million and an IRR 43.3%.

Gryphon has a pretax NPV, at an 8% discount rate, of $560.6-million and an IRR of return of 23.2%.

Capital Expenditure
Initial capital costs are estimated at $322.5-million.

Planned Start/End Date
Preproduction activities are estimated to begin in 2021, assuming receipt of required regulatory approvals, with first production from the Phoenix deposit expected in 2024.

Initial construction at Gryphon is expected to start by 2026, with first production expected to be achieved in 2030.

Latest Developments
The Canadian Safety Commission and the Saskatchewan Ministry of Environment have accepted the provincial technical proposal and federal project description submitted by Denison Mines for the in situ recovery uranium mine and processing plant proposed for the company’s 90%-owned Wheeler River project.

Denison has also executed a series of memorandums of understanding with indigenous communities in support of the mine’s development.

Key Contracts and Suppliers
None stated.

On Budget and on Time?
Not stated.

Contact Details for Project Information
Denison Mines, tel +1416 979 1991, fax +1416 979 5893 or email info@denisonmines.com.