On Monday, a decades-old ban on uranium mining was overthrown, causing jubilation among several companies involved in the industry, which mostly saw their shares shoot up.
Queensland has not seen uranium mining in almost 30 years, although uranium operations have been successful in other states like Northern Territory, South Australia, and Western Australia.
In a statement, state Premier Campbell Newman and the Honorable Andrew Cripps, Minister for Natural Resources and Mines, both declared that the decision came after long deliberation and acknowledged the Federal Australian labor party’s strong support for uranium mining.
Laramide Resources (TSE: LAM) praised the decision as “very positive” for the company’s business and its Westmoreland project in Queensland, which is one of the three known resources in the state.
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“Westmoreland is one of the largest and highest quality uranium development projects in Australia – or in the world, for that matter – and will now clearly benefit from clarity over its uranium mining position and our development path and timing,” said Laramide president and CEO, Marc Henderson, in a statement.
Paladin Energy (TSE: PDN), a much larger company with projects in Australia and Africa, also came out praising the government’s move.
Paladin’s stock rose to $1.26, or about 7 percent, while Laramide rose over 21 percent to $1.00 after the announcement. Mega Uranium (TSE: MGA) also saw shares rise by almost 44 percent to 18 cents.
