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United States
Smith Ranch-Highland Operation (North Butte-Brown Ranch Mine)

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 Location:
137 km NE from Gillette, Wyoming, United States

  Address:
P.O. Box 1210
Glenrock
Wyoming, United States
82637
Phone  ...  Subscription required
Fax(307)-358-4533
WebsiteWeb
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  • Overview
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Overview

StatusCare and Maintenance
Mine TypeIn-Situ
Commodities
  • Uranium
Mining Method
  • Solution mining
Processing
  • Dewatering
  • Resin adsorption
  • In-Situ Recovery (ISR)
  • Ion Exchange (IX)
Due to market conditions, Cameco curtailed production and deferred all wellfield development during the second quarter of 2016.
Cameco do not expect any production in 2021.


Owners

Source:
CompanyInterestOwnership
Cameco Corp. 100 % Indirect
Power Resources, Inc. (operator) 100 % Direct

Deposit Type

  • Sandstone hosted


Summary:

The sandstone-type roll-front deposits located in the southern part of the Powder River Basin in Wyoming host the Smith Ranch–Highland facility.

The U ore deposits at the Smith Ranch–Highland location were derived from the weathering of granitic source rocks located along the southern margin of the Powder River Basin and from the alteration and leaching of granitic sediments and late Tertiary volcanic ashes deposited within the basin consistent with the origin of the arkosic sandstone host rocks. The absence of mafic minerals within the arkosic sandstone confirms that the sediments were derived primarily from granitic rocks. U was presumably mobilized by oxygenated and carbonated waters and appears to have been immobilized when it encountered reducing conditions within or near carbonaceous matter and pyrite, which are commonly present at variable amounts within the arkosic sandstone. The primary and secondary mineral assemblages suggest that the shallow burial diagenetic processes were not intense, consistent with the insignificant alteration of the detrital minerals and the lack of cementation within the matrix of the host rocks, thus allowing fluids to readily flow during the formation of the roll-front deposits.


Mining Methods

  • Solution mining


Summary:

In situ recovery (ISR) involves the use of a leaching solution, called a lixiviant, to extract the uranium from the geologic formation in which it occurs, without physically removing the ore-bearing strata. For uranium ISR, the lixiviant typically consists of native groundwater to which an oxidant (typically oxygen or hydrogen peroxide) and a complexing agent (typically sodium bicarbonate and/or carbon dioxide) have been added. ISR is accomplished by injecting the lixiviant through injection wells and circulating it through the ore-bearing strata, where the uranium is mobilized and placed into solution with the lixiviant. The resultant uranium-bearing solution is extracted from the ground via adjacent production wells. The uranium laden groundwater is then routed via underground pipelines to a surface ion exchange (IX) facility.

The most significant aspects of lixiviant compatibility are clay mineralogy and chemical compatibility. The clay mineralogy at Smith Ranch is predominantly kaolinite. This clay mineral is compatible with an ISR operation in that it will not swell and by so doing damage formation permeability, nor is it aggressive in cation exchange processes, which could adversely alter the water chemistry. Chemical compatibility of the formation mineralogy with the ISR process is important. Elevated calcium, sodium and sulfate concentrations, which often occur during ISR can result in the precipitation of calcite or gypsum in the ore sand and reduced formation permeability. Operating experience has shown that the lixiviant in use at Smith Ranch is chemically compatible with the major constituents that could cause formation damage or loss of formation permeability. The amenability of the North Butte orebody to ISR is assured by the similarity of this ore deposit to those located in the surrounding area.


Crushing and Grinding


Processing

  • Dewatering
  • Resin adsorption
  • In-Situ Recovery (ISR)
  • Ion Exchange (IX)

Source: Subscription required

Summary:

Cameco operates Smith Ranch and Highland as a combined operation. Each has its own processing facility, but the Smith Ranch central plant currently processes all the uranium, including uranium from satellite facilities. The Highland plant is currently idle.

The uranium-bearing solution pumped from a mine unit is piped to the Central Process Plant (CPP) or satellites for extraction of the uranium by use of down flow ion exchange (IX) columns to remove the uranium. As the solution passes through the resin in the IX column, the uranium is preferentially removed from the solution by attachment to the resin.

Once the resin in a column is sufficiently loaded with uranium, the vessel is isolated from the normal process flow and the resin is removed from the column for elution. In the elution process, the resin is contacted with a strong sodium chloride solution, which displaces the uranium and regenerates the resin in a process very similar to regenerating a convention ........


Production:

CommodityUnits2017201620152014
Uranium (U3O8) M lbs 0.30.91.42.1
All production numbers are expressed as U3O8.

Operational Metrics:

Metrics20202019201820162015
Annual mining capacity  ......  Subscription required3 M lbs of U3O83 M lbs of U3O83 M lbs of U3O83 M lbs of U3O8
Annual production capacity  ......  Subscription required5.5 M lbs of U3O85.5 M lbs of U3O85.5 M lbs of U3O85.5 M lbs of U3O8
Subscription required - Subscription is required.

Reserves at December 31, 2020:

CategoryTonnage CommodityGradeContained Metal
Measured 3,711 kt U3O8 0.1 % 7.9 M lbs
Indicated 14,372 kt U3O8 0.05 % 17 M lbs
Inferred 6,681 kt U3O8 0.05 % 7.7 M lbs


Heavy Mobile Equipment:

Mine Management:

Job TitleNameProfileRef. Date
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Oct 25, 2021
Subscription required - Subscription is required.

Staff:

EmployeesYear
Subscription required 2016

Corporate Filings & Presentations:

DocumentYear
................................... Subscription required 2020
................................... Subscription required 2019
Annual Report 2018
Annual Report 2017
Form 40-F 2016
Form 40-F 2015
Other 2014
Technical Report 2012
Subscription required - Subscription is required.

Aerial view:

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