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enCore wins EPA backing to advance Dewey Burdock permitting
The Dewey Burdock ISR Uranium Project has been approved for inclusion in the Fast-41 Program by the U.S. Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council
enCore Energy Corp., America’s Clean Energy Company™, is committed to providing clean, reliable, and affordable fuel for nuclear energy as the only United States uranium company with multiple Central Processing Plants in operation.
enCore Energy’s 100% owned Dewey Burdock Project is an advanced-stage uranium project located in the historic Edgemont Uranium District in South Dakota. The project is divided into two mineral resource areas, the Dewey and Burdock sites, where wellfields would extract uranium and deliver it to a central processing facility at Burdock, with a satellite facility constructed at Dewey.
The project will utilize In-Situ Recovery (ISR), a process that circulates a water-based solution through the ore body to dissolve uranium underground, reducing surface disturbance and allowing for groundwater restoration following operations. The project is expected to bring a significant economic benefit to the local area with millions of dollars in expenditures, payroll, tax revenue, new jobs, and commercial activity supporting the project.
The Dewey Burdock Project is one of the Company’s initial development priorities following the focus on operations in South Texas. The Company’s 100% owned Dewey Burdock Project is located in the Edgemont Uranium District in South Dakota.
Through multiple property purchase agreements, mining leases and/or mining claims, the Dewey Burdock Project is comprised of approximately 12,613 surface acres and 16,962 net mineral acres. The Company filed an S-K 1300 Technical Report Summary Independent Technical Report and PEA for the Dewey Burdock Project, dated January 6, 2025, and prepared by SOLA Project Services, LLC of Casper, Wyoming, with Stuart Bryan Soliz, P.G., Principal of SOLA Project Services, LLC being the Qualified Person for the purposes of Regulation S-K subpart 1300.
The 2025 Preliminary Economic Assessment for the Dewey Burdock Project targets permitting completion by Q3 2026, engineering in early 2026, and construction of the Central Processing Plant (CPP) and wellfields in early 2027.
The Dewey Burdock ISR Uranium Project has been approved for inclusion in the Fast-41 Program by the U.S. Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council. This is a component of the implementation of President Trump’s Executive Order on Immediate Measures to Increase American Mineral Production. The Company’s Dewey Burdock Project received its Source and Byproduct Materials License in 2014, from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (“NRC”), now under timely renewal, and will work with the NRC as the lead agency for federal permitting. enCore’s objective is to advance the Dewey Burdock Project into development and operation utilizing the In-Situ Recovery uranium extraction process.
Uranium was first discovered in the Edgemont district of South Dakota in 1952, with early finds at the surface and later drilling uncovering deeper deposits. In the mid-1970s, the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) took a major interest in the area, focusing exploration on the Dewey Burdock project. Under TVA’s direction, Silver King Mines drilled more than 4,000 holes, building a detailed understanding of the resource. Decades later, in 2021, enCore Energy acquired Dewey Burdock from Azarga Uranium, carrying forward the project’s long history of exploration into its next chapter.
In-Situ Recovery (ISR) is a mineral extraction technology which injects a water-based lixiviant solution into the ground to extract minerals from the earth without conventional mining techniques and minimal use of groundwater. Recovery wells pump the mineral-carrying solution back to the surface where it is taken to processing facility to be separated. ISR has been safely used around the world for over 50 years with minimal environmental impact. Once an ISR operation is complete, the groundwater and land are restored to their previous condition and use categories.
enCore Energy Corp., America’s Clean Energy Company™, is committed to providing clean, reliable, and affordable fuel for nuclear energy as the only United States uranium company with multiple Central Processing Plants in operation. The enCore team is led by industry experts with extensive knowledge and experience in all aspects of In-Situ Recovery (“ISR”) uranium operations and the nuclear fuel cycle. enCore solely utilizes ISR for uranium extraction, a well-known and proven technology co-developed by the leaders at enCore Energy.
Following upon enCore’s demonstrated success in South Texas, future projects in enCore’s planned project pipeline include the Dewey Burdock project in South Dakota and the Gas Hills project in Wyoming. The Company holds other assets including, non-core assets and proprietary databases. enCore is committed to working with local communities and indigenous governments to create positive impact from corporate developments.
enCore’s Operating Alta Mesa Plant in South Texas
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has determined that the portion of the aquifer where enCore’s ISR operations will take place is an “exempt aquifer,” meaning it is already contaminated and is not and can never be used as a source of human drinking water. During the ISR process, water in this exempt aquifer will have an increase in trace elements and salinity as the uranium is dissolved. In the U.S., ISR is highly regulated and uses a closed-loop system that is monitored to keep fluids contained as the dissolved uranium is pumped to the surface. In fact, according to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, “In almost 40 years of operational experience, the NRC staff is aware of no documented instance of an ISR wellfield being the source of contamination of an adjacent or nearby aquifer, or of the non-exempt portion of the same aquifer in which ISR activities are being conducted. enCore is required to restore the groundwater to its original use category after extraction is complete.
Sources
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
This is not the cold war era of the 1950s and 1960s when environmental cleanup and employee safety at conventional uranium mines were afterthoughts. Licensing of Dewey Burdock requires firm plans for not only development and operations, but also for reclamation and restoration of both the site and the affected groundwater. enCore will be required to secure and post a total of approximately $15 million in bonds with the Environmental Protection Agency and Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to ensure sound reclamation. Only when the cleanup is approved, by both the State of South Dakota and the NRC, will the bonds be returned to enCore.
The nuclear energy industry is the singularly most highly regulated industry in the United States which includes everything from uranium extraction to the x-ray in the local hospital. There are no exceptions.
No, enCore does not use harsh chemicals in the uranium extraction process, and we only extract uranium from the aquifer the Environmental Protection Agency has deemed contaminated and cannot be used for drinking water by humans. Only liquid oxygen and, at times, carbon dioxide will be added to groundwater that circulates through the ore body. This is the equivalent of adding oxygen and baking soda to the already contaminated underground aquifer, never touching drinking water. In the already contaminated aquifer, the oxygen combined with water acts to dissolve the uranium minerals which exist as coatings on sand grains. We recover this uranium carbonate in our water treatment plant (similar to a home water softener, only much larger). The native water from the aquifer is then recycled with additional oxygen and possibly carbon dioxide. Unlike conventional uranium mills, we do not use any acid to dissolve the uranium as they do in foreign countries. The United States has very high environmental standards.
There are 24 reclaimed projects in the United States, with enCore Directors having worked on 10 of the projects. enCore leadership co-invented ISR and have worked in the field for over 40 years building, operating and reclaiming ISR uranium projects in Texas and Wyoming.
It is also important to understand that, typically, wellfield installations and reclamation of ISR projects are conducted simultaneously. As enCore extracts uranium from one field it builds more wellfields, always in specific patterns. The company then removes and reclaims exhausted wellfields, while simultaneously starting ISR extraction in the next.
Prior to any extraction activity, enCore is required by law to install a series of water wells in the proposed extraction area – in the already contaminated aquifer and any adjacent aquifers (groundwater). The water quality in each of these wells is tested by an independent 3rd party (a licensed laboratory) which establishes the baseline water quality and use category of these groundwaters prior to extraction. This establishes the use category enCore will be required to meet in reclamation, using pre-extraction levels established by independent experts, and in reclamation, these independent experts will also verify the work.
The nuclear energy industry is extremely regulated with safety and health regulations in place (including worker safety, air quality, radiation, water quality, spill management and more) that apply to on-site facilities and extend to transportation of the natural uranium product (yellowcake). Yellowcake is dried uranium, which is sealed in steel containers for transport to a conversion facility, where it is converted into an energy source for domestic and commercial use in the electric grid. It is shipped by tractor-trailer and regulated by the U.S. Department of Transportation with stringent requirement for yellowcake shipments (as apply to propane and other energy sources). Of these requirements, advance written notification of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) of the planned shipment, including the route to be followed is included. In addition, only a small number of trucking companies are certified to handle and transport yellowcake.
On site, containment facilities, protective gear, electronic monitoring and a strict regulated workplace maintain worker safety.
enCore is a North American company, and all benefits stay within the United States. Uranium produced at Dewey Burdock will be sold only to domestic (U.S.) power companies who use uranium to generate power for the electric which powers your home and business. Locally, up to 80 jobs are needed for construction and operations with people living and spending money in Fall River and Custer Counties. Using a base case PER YEAR (without applying the usual 3 to 4 times multiplier benefit of money circulating in local communities) benefits include:
Reference NI43-101 Technical Report – Preliminary Economic Assessment Dewey-Burdock Project, Woodard & Corran Dec 22, 2020.
It is expected activity from development, operations and reclamation will last approximately 20 years and will fuel our economy while creating jobs and strengthen local businesses. It is important we provide opportunities for our youth to benefit from extraction activities through jobs, education and training, allowing our communities and families to grow and prosper.
This is not possible. The already contaminated aquifer containing the uranium (and vanadium in this case) is situated in a geological structure that is contained in a unique, isolated location that allows for In-Situ Recovery extraction of uranium. The mineralized, contaminated aquifer is in no way connected to either the Cheyenne River or the drinking water supply for Hot Springs or Edgemont. These geological and hydrological facts can be verified by professors at the South Dakota School of Mines and the University of South Dakota. Clean water is vital to our collective lives; whether we are ranchers, miners, teachers or hospital workers, we all need it to survive.
No. This rumor appears to be a misinterpretation of the South Dakota State Engineer’s recommendation to grant the company’s water rights permits. During uranium extraction operations, large quantities of water from the contaminated underground aquifer circulate through the aquifer to dissolve uranium in the water. However, after the uranium has been recovered in a water treatment plant, 99% of the water is reinjected into the ground and recirculated – not consumed. Consumptive use of ground water is limited to approximately 1% of the circulated water which typically averages between 50 to 100 gallons per minute. Once extraction is complete, the recirculated water is cleaned with 99% returned to the aquifer and again made suitable for all the same uses it was prior to enCore’s involvement. It is important that enCore conserves and recycles water. It is vital to the operations to maintain water levels for successful extraction of the uranium. It is vital we conduct ourselves as good corporate citizens and contribute in a positive way to the communities in which we work. We must leave a positive legacy which includes valuable infrastructure, water wells, power lines, clean drinking water and vibrant communities with high paying jobs and transferable skills for our youth.
Fracking is totally different than ISR, is a prohibited activity, and is not a viable practice for ISR. Fracking opens up preferential “cracks” in the subsurface to extract hydrocarbons, while ISR is designed specifically to avoid opening “cracks.” Uranium minerals suitable for ISR extraction are deposited as coating on sand grains and spread across both vertical and horizontal areas of the contaminated underground aquifer. ISR wells are designed to ensure that the water used in extraction is spread out slowly and consistently to contact and dissolve the uranium minerals. Fracking would be totally counterproductive to ISR, as most, if not all, the uranium would be bypassed by water moving in these “cracks.”