NexGen Energy Ltd (ASX: NXG) has been granted environmental approval to build its Rook 1 uranium mine in Canada, which is set to be among the world's largest.
The company said in a statement to the ASX on Friday that the environmental approval from the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission was the final approval necessary for the project, which it owns 100% of.
The ASX-listed uranium company said it had worked together with local indigenous groups and partners on the permitting process.
The company went on to say:
When fully operational, the Rook I Project will be the largest single source and environmentally elite uranium mine globally, incorporating state-of-the-art extraction and safety systems. In production, Rook I is capable of producing up to 30 million pounds annually – representing over 20% of the current global uranium fuel supply and over 50% of western world supply.
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All systems go
The company said now that approvals were in place, it was set to begin construction.
The team, procurement, engineering, vendors, contractors and capital are in place to commence construction activities with advanced site and shaft sinking preparation. NexGen has already made its Final Investment Decision with official construction commencing in summer 2026. As per the Rook I Project schedule, construction will take 4 years from commencement.
NexGen Chief Executive Officer Leigh Curyer said the company had gone through what was "one of the most rigorous and comprehensive regulatory processes undertaken for a resource project globally''.
He added:
The world is changing fast, and NexGen's Rook I is now ready to be a significant contributor to global requirements for nuclear energy and Canada's role as an energy superpower. As global demand for reliable, clean, baseload nuclear energy continues to accelerate at an unprecedented pace, uranium is the critical fuel for powering industrial electrification and the digital infrastructure of tomorrow. Simply put, energy is the key to our global growth. Nuclear is the chosen energy to supply that economic growth. NexGen is the foundational and necessary key to fuelling that growth.
The Rook 1 project will be an underground mine in the Athabasca region of Canada.
NexGen's feasibility study envisages the project operating for a mine life of 11 years, over which time it would produce 233.6 million pounds of uranium.
NexGen's Australian shares were 1 cent higher on the news at $17.87. The company's shares are also listed on the New York Stock Exchange and the Toronto Stock Exchange.
The company's ASX-listed shares were valued at $11.79 billion at the close of trade on Thursday.
