Uranium Re-evaluation For Equinox But As A 'Sideline'

Adelaide, Sept 7, 2006 (ABN Newswire) - The uranium potential of its emerging US$800 million Lumwana copper mine in Zambia is being re-evaluated by project owner, Australia's Equinox Minerals Limited - but will not detract from the Company's core copper focus.

Addressing the Paydirt Media 2006 Africa Downunder Conference in Perth today, attended by a record more than 400 delegates, Equinox's Chief Executive Officer, Mr Craig Williams, said Lumwana had discrete high grade uranium veins within the project's copper pits.

"In the current high price market for uranium, we are re-evaluating the potential for a significant uranium by-product from the mine," Mr Williams said.

"The project has a uranium resource of 12.1 million tonnes grading 0.082% uranium oxide for a contained uranium resource of 21.8 million pounds within the 170 million pounds copper resource.

"The uranium is not part of our current development plan but may now be an add-on to this plan as Lumwana's Bankable Feasibility Study was based around a uranium price of US$11 a pound compared to the current U$50 a pound."

Mr Williams said the plant design for uranium extraction provided metallurgically for a 97% uranium recovery with no contamination of the copper concentrate.

Lumwana, one of the world's largest undeveloped copper projects, is due to be commissioned in the first half of calendar 2008, producing 169,000 tonnes of copper annually in its first six years with a total mine life of 37 years.

About Africa DownUnder Conference

The Africa DownUnder Conference, now in it's fourth year, is expected to be a blockbuster. Up to 400 delegates are expected at the two-day event. An impressive line-up of presenters have been invited and several African countries will have official representation. At least 50 corporate booths have been allocated, reflecting a diversity of commodity and geographical location which has made this "boutique" conference the enormously successful event that it is. Second only to South Africa's Indaba in Cape Town, Africa DownUnder has become a core resources event for Australian's either doing business or planning to work on the the African continent. Apart from the corporate show-and-tell presentations, key-note addresses will be made by top-ranking government officials from South Africa, Zambia, Botswana, Equatorial Guinea, Mali, Eritrea and Libya.