A green answer to energy demands

Early in 2006, mineral and energy exploration company Sparton Resources of Toronto signed a historical agreement with the remote sensing and research branch of the China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) to evaluate the uranium potential of the country's coal ash and phosphate waste sites.

Its efforts to help China meet its energy and environmental objectives earned Sparton a position in the China New Energy Advisory Council.

Various types of coal and phosphate rock contain large amounts of naturally occurring uranium. Burning coal concentrates the uranium in the waste, and production of phosphoric acid from high uranium content phosphate rock removes the uranium. These processes improve the safety of phosphoric fertilizers and increase the amount of tailings that can be used as building materials.

In addition, the company plans to sell recovered uranium back to the CNNC. Its agreement with the CNNC makes Sparton the only foreign firm allowed to produce uranium in China.

Sparton President A.Lee Barker says his company's method is not "rocket science" but the non-conventional form of uranium production that has been underused in China.

"Unless you employ these actions, the waste materials generated from energy and fertilizer production cannot be reused for concrete, cement or other fillers. Because of the high rate of adoption in North America, 70 percent of the coal ash is reused, while in China only 25 percent of the coal ash is reused," he says.

Currently, the company is assessing the China Guodian Xiaolongtang Thermal Power Plant in Yunnan, which has been operational since 1987 and is the first of many sites Sparton hopes to develop.

"There is about 5 million tons of waste at the Yunnan site, which contains about 2.5 million pounds of uranium oxide," Barker points out.

Sparton's presence in China offers a green solution to the country's energy demands and provides investors with a unique opportunity.

www.spartonres.ca

(China Daily 11/13/2007 page25)