Finnish mining company Terrafame (formerly known as Talvivaara) has announced it will apply for a permit to produce uranium. If the permit is approved and production is successful, the Kainuu mine would start recovering uranium in 2019.
At present uranium is produced as a by-product of the company's nickel-production process, but the company does not recover it. The firm has, however, constructed a 75 million euro uranium recovery plant.
"In relation with nickel and zinc production, the financial impact of uranium recovery would not be significant, but it would improve Terrafame’s profitability," said Terrafame CEO Joni Lukkaroinen in a press release.
State backing
The Finnish state is the majority owner of Terrafame, which was formerly known as Talvivaara. After extensive environmental problems with the company's new production process, in 2015 the company was heading for bankruptcy when the Finnish state stepped in through Terrafame.
In February the company announced 250 million euros of private investment from the Trafigura raw materials company, which took a 15.5 percent stake in return.
In May 2016 the government was planning to shut down the mine, but in November the company was granted additional government funds and continued operation. In all, the Finnish state has ploughed in more than half a billion euros to keep Terrafame running.
In June this year, the founder of Talvivaara Pekka Perä was given a suspended prison sentence for giving inaccurate nickel production forecasts. A separate trial on environmental crime charges is now before the appeals court, after several senior figures were convicted and fined in 2016.
In third quarter results released on Wednesday, Terrafame said its turnover hit 64 million euros with operating profit at 42.5 million euros.
The firm recently concluded lay-off talks with the loss of 37 jobs.
_EDIT-An earlier version of this story stated that Finland would be the only country in the EU to produce uranium. That is not the case, as there will by 2019 be uranium production in Spain, Bulgaria and the Czech Republic. _
