Rössing Uranium officially launched its 2023 Sustainability and Performance Report on Tuesday in Windhoek.
Rössing Uranium managing director Johan Coetzee said during the launch that last year was exceptional in terms of production and financial performance, with the mine producing 6.4 million pounds of uranium (U3O8) and selling 6.9 million pounds of U3O8.
He further revealed that the total revenue earned amounted to N$6.48 billion, compared to N$4.84 billion in 2022.
“Around 1.8 million pounds were shipped to western converters and sold to customers in North America, Asia (excluding China) and Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA). A total of 3.7 million pounds were shipped and sold to China. An additional 1.4 million pounds were sold to non-utility customers (traders and funds) on the spot market, capitalising on the sudden price spike during the year.
Rössing has benefited from the spot prices under a China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) sales arrangement,” Coetzee said.
A total of 2 920 metric tonnes of uranium oxide were produced, compared to 2 659 metric tonnes in 2022.
Dividends of N$177 million were declared and paid during the year.
The Minister of Mines and Energy, Tom Alweendo in his keynote address indicated that the mining industry’s contribution to the GDP of Namibia was 14.4% in 2023, compared to 11.9% in 2022.
“Moreover, last year, the mining industry spent more than N$21 billion on local procurement. In addition, the mining industry contributed to the fiscus of at least N$6.4 billion in royalties and taxes, as opposed to N$4.2 billion in 2022. The mining industry’s direct employment is now standing at around 18 189. The industry altogether also contributed a total expenditure of N$211 million in corporate social responsibility,” Alweendo said. -Nampa