Australian explorer, Uran Limited appears to be the latest victim of the global bureaucratic hurdle as the Czech town council of Pribyslav, rejected an offer from the Australian company for it to be allowed to explore what are believed to be rich uranium deposits in the centre of the country.

Pribyslav was one of Uran’s target areas because it is thought to have about 7,500 tonnes of uranium at nearby Brzkov.

Uran had this to say about Brzkov:

“Uran has lodged applications for 4 exploration permits over defined uranium deposits around Brzkov, about 50km from Rozna. Regional exploration identified a number of deposits including the most significant, Brzkov and Veznice. The mineralization is similar to that at Rozna uranium mine, consisting of high-grade lenticular pods and veins with associated disseminated mineralization in the deep-seated Pribyslav fault zone. Mineralization consists mainly of uraninite and coffinite and extends from near surface to at least 600 metres below surface. Similar deposits in the region are known to extend to at least 1,000 metres.”

The Aussie miner had hoped to gain council backing in order to overturn previous environment ministry rejections of its exploration bids, however on this occasion they have been unsuccessful.

The importance of the environmental considerations cannot be overstated and the council are correct in their stance if they consider the proposal to be a danger. However, once all of the requirements have been satisfied then it comes down to a question of money. Whether it is in terms of a mineral tax or a piece of the action, an incentive is needed that is attractive enough to be snapped up by the objecting party. The commodities boom is no longer a secret as we see, almost on a daily basis, governments, minorites and even town councils standing up for their rights. These opportunities come just once in a lifetime so the people responsible have to manage their parcel of land ensuring that they squeeze everything they can out of it.

Expect more of the same and review your portfolio from a geo-political perspective to assess the risk of your investments. If you do use SWOT analysis then this one belongs with the ‘Threats’ as it has the ability to stop your project from getting off the ground.

Uran Limited trades on the Australian Stock Exchange under the symbol of URA, at around $A0.245 per share

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