Australian company A-Cap Resources (ASX:ACB) is a step further to developing Botswana’s first uranium mine, after the government approved its environmental impact statement (EIA). Open-pit operation has a projected minelife of 18 years.

“We have been conducting extensive work over the years, commencing 2009, in studying and identifying the overall environmental and social impacts associated with developing the first uranium mine in Botswana. The board has ensured the highest standards have been adopted in preparing the Environment Impact Statement,” A-Cap CEO Paul Thomson said in a statement.

The ASX-listed junior, valued at $17.6 million as of Friday, is planning to develop the Letlhakane uranium mine, an open-pit operation that would run for 18 years, producing 3.75 million pounds annually. According to A-Cap Letlhakane  is “one of the world’s largest undeveloped uranium deposits” with a JORC-compliant resource of 365.7 million pounds U3O8, with a high-grade resource of 103.8Mt at 450 parts per million (ppm) U3O8.

A-Cap says it has completed over 149,000 metres of reverse circulation and diamond drilling over the area, indicating shallow mineralization resulting in a low capex operation.

Investors in the company have been taken on a ride recently, with the stock advancing 50 percent year to date and jumping 41.1 percent on Friday.

Another Australian firm, Impact Minerals (ASX:IPT), is also exploring some prospective deposits in eastern Botswana, a country that is estimated to hold around 1.04 billion tonnes in uranium reserves, mostly in its central area.(source: mining.com)