, is headed for a stoush about one of the richest known and unmined uranium deposits in the world, at a time when uranium prices have rocketed and even Australia’s politicians are talking about a nuclear future.
ERA’s targeted $1 billion has nothing to do with Jabiluka. The money is pegged for its nearby Ranger project, also in the Kakadu region, on the Mirrar’s lands and strongly opposed by its people for decades. Ranger stopped mining a decade ago but was Australia’s longest continuous uranium mine operation, one of only a handful of mines in the NT, and is now a very costly, political and closely watched rehabilitation site.
“We are very excited about ,” says Willy Packer, a fund manager whose Packer & Co is the most influential minority investor with a 9.3 per cent stake. He thinks in dollars and cents, and says Jabiluka could be run as an underground mine with little disruption at ground level.“It is an extremely valuable resource – it is valuable to our country, to the NT, to the Aboriginal people. We are talking $2 billion a year in revenue.
Its executives are expected to argue that extending the current framework is in the Mirrar’s interest – that is, in the interest of not mining the site. The current lease puts Indigenous rights ahead of mining rights, which is unlike most mining leases in Australia. Therefore, the Mirrar have veto rights, which ERA could argue is unique and worth protecting.