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GoviEx Uranium (OTCQX:GVXXF) -30% in Friday’s trading after saying the Niger government has stripped the company of its right to develop a uranium project, after the government last month revoked a mining permit held by French firm Orano.
GoviEx (OTCQX:GVXXF) said it was been informed by Niger’s mines ministry that it no longer holds the rights over the perimeter of the Madaouela mining permit, which is now in the public domain.
“With the recent recovery in uranium prices, the Madaouela project was poised for development and the company had started to advance despite the political changes in Niger since the coup” a year ago, GoviEx (OTCQX:GVXXF) said, adding that it was in the process of raising ~$200M through debt financing to fund the project.
Niger, which accounted for ~4% of global uranium mine production in 2022, has forged closer ties with Russia since a coup in the African country last year, paving the way for Russia to seek access to mining interests there.