PALADIN Energy said on Wednesday it had raised A$300m through the placement of shares with investors and through a ‘bought deal’ in Canada.
The Australian-listed uranium development firm and producer plans also to raise A$20m through a share purchase plan.
The proceeds from the share placement and bought deal (shares placed by agreement with a lender at a significant discount) will be used for the development of the Patterson Lake South Project in Canada, following the acquisition of the project’s former owner Fission Uranium Corp., and the continued ramp up of Langer Heinrich, the Namibian mine.
“We are delighted with the support we have received for the equity raising from high-quality existing and new institutional investors located in Australia, Canada and internationally,” said Paul Hemburrow, Paladin MD and CEO.
Paladin placed 31.9 million shares at A$7.25 per share raising A$231m before costs while the bought deal was for 4.5 million shares at C$6.66/share, raising C$30m or A$33m before costs. It also raised A$36m from the sale of five million shares held in Treasury.
Shares in the company are 15% lower over the past 12 months despite relatively robust market conditions for uranium. This is owing to a change in production guidance. Management now expects production to range between four million and 4.4 million pounds of uranium, with costs projected between $44 and $48/lb this year – figures that fell short of analyst expectations on both metrics.
In July company executives attributed the revised projections to unexpected increases in mining and blasting expenditure, alongside variability in ore grades from stockpiled material at the Namibian site. The company’s shares are currently trading at A$7.76 a piece on the Australian Securities Exchange.
Langer Heinrich is on track to be completed by the end of the firm’s 2026 financial year with full mining and processing plant operations planned for 2027.
