Alligator Energy Targets 2030-31 Samphire Uranium Production after Completing FRT

Alligator Energy (ASX: AGE) has outlined a pathway targeting production from its Samphire uranium project in 2030 or 2031 after completing a field recovery trial (FRT) and increasing the project’s mineral resource estimate (MRE) to 30 million pounds of uranium oxide.

The South Australian project, located 20km from Whyalla, is moving into a feasibility study (FS) and Mining Lease application while accelerated drilling seeks to expand the mining inventory and increase confidence in the Plumbush resource.

Alligator is targeting FS delivery in mid-2027, offtake and project financing milestones by the end of 2027 or early 2028, and construction during 2029 or 2030, subject to approval of the Mining Lease and a final investment decision.

The strategy combines development of an in situ recovery (ISR) operation at Samphire with ongoing exploration of the Big Lake project in the Cooper Basin and assessment of other opportunities suited to the company’s ISR expertise.

Reduced Technical Risk

The FRT was completed on 30 June 2026, with the pattern representing the orebody targeted for initial development achieving the industry benchmark of 70% uranium recovery over 70 pore volumes.

Recovered solution reached a grade of 115 parts per million (ppm) uranium oxide and flow rates of up to five litres per second, which Alligator reported as above peer averages.

Reagent consumption fell within the favourable category of the international ISR standard and can be supplied locally, while the higher flow rate creates an optimisation opportunity through fewer wells and lower costs for the same annual production rate.

A second pattern testing lower-grade and lower-flow material outside the scoping study and FS MRE performed in line with forecasts, indicating that marginal orebody areas could become commercially viable if uranium pricing supports their inclusion.

Continued Resource Growth

Samphire’s MRE has increased 67% from 18Mlb to 30Mlb of uranium oxide through the inclusion of Plumbush, comprising 18Mlb at Blackbush and 12Mlb at Plumbush across Indicated and Inferred categories.

Blackbush contains 14.2 Mlb in the Indicated category at 786ppm and 3.8 Mlb in the Inferred category at 443ppm, while the entire Plumbush resource remains Inferred.

A binding call option over the Mullaquana Crown Lease has secured access for drilling southern Blackbush extensions, infilling Plumbush and testing the underexplored corridor between the deposits.

Alligator plans about 300 drill holes across these areas by the end of November 2027, with early drilling already extending uranium mineralisation 600 metres south of Blackbush at grades described as similar to the existing deposit.

Economics Frame Development

The December 2023 scoping study modelled A$131 million in capital expenditure, a post-tax net present value at an 8% discount rate of A$257m, a 42% post-tax internal rate of return and a 2.45-year payback period.

That was based on a long-term uranium price of US$75/lb and the former 18-million-pound MRE.

The study also assumed annual production of 1.2Mlb, with cash costs of US$16.06/lb and all-in sustaining costs of US$33.31/lb, while the FS will incorporate the FRT results and expanded resource base.

Beyond Samphire, drilling is continuing at the Big Lake project after maiden work intersected uranium mineralisation over widths of up to 35m, with Alligator assessing the potential for a larger ISR-style uranium system in the Cooper Basin.