Dear Shareholders,
The 8.9 earthquake in Sendai-Tohoku, northeastern Japan last Thursday,
March 11th, the tsunami that followed, and the ongoing crisis at the
Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant have captured the minds and hearts of
people across the world. Tragically, the news as told by the western media
has not always been balanced with respect to the impacts of the earthquake,
the tsunami and the nuclear plant. Regardless of the impact of this event
on the uranium exploration and mining sector, I would like express, on
behalf of all of us here at Hathor, sincere
condolences to all those in Sendai-Tohoku, and elsewhere in Japan, affected
by this tragedy.
The magnitude of this earthquake makes it a truly once-in-a-millennium
event. And the events at Fukushima, caused by this enormous natural
disaster are still unfolding, are adding pages to the young history of
nuclear power. We all need to keep these pages in perspectives: the sheer
magnitude of the story, the lack of precedent, and the time it will take
for the story to fully unfold. Patience is required; there are still many
questions for which we do not yet have answers.
What we do know is this: nuclear power is not going away. It provides some
15% of the world's base-load power, energy that most countries simply
cannot turn their back on. Primary mine supply of uranium remains some 50 M
lbs shy of the 180 M lbs demanded annually by the world's fleet of 430
plants which produce that energy. Although the price of uranium has been
hit by this crisis, it will not and cannot collapse if the industry expects
to fill this fundamental supply-demand gap. Even as I write this message
this morning, a note from Versant Partners observes a stabilizing pattern
in the daily spot price of uranium, and the need for the spot to move back
up to at least $60/lb in order to sustain project development and mine
production around the world.
We also know that the importance of the Athabasca Basin in Saskatchewan as the preeminent
high grade uranium district in the world is not going to change in light of
the Fukushima event. No matter what the price of uranium is, the Basin will continue to
host the lowest cost primary mine producers in the world, and that is the
inherent value of a discovery like Hathor's Roughrider: a best of breed asset
capable of generating value during any point of a commodity price cycle.
The Basin has supplied between 20 - 30% of western world supply for the
last 40 years, and will continue to do so for the next 30 years. Grade is king in the
mining industry, and Roughrider has it. The Athabasca uranium deposits are
up to 200 times the world average grade. Hathor's Roughrider deposit will
still be standing after this event is over as one of the very, very few
high grade discoveries in the world.
Is the nuclear industry different today, one week after the Japan
earthquake? Yes. Will the financial sector react? Yes. Growth profiles for
the nuclear industry will be re-examined and premiums will be adjusted for
the producers- we have already seen this. Spot price projections will be
re-examined and cash flow analyses and target prices will be re-examined
for both exploration and mining companies alike, and this is just starting
to happen. But amidst these realities, my conviction remains as to the real
and inherent value of the Roughrider deposit. Going forward in 2011,
Hathor's focus will be squarely on the execution of key milestones which
retain the potential to add value to this Company and the sector. They include:
1. 43-101 Compliant Resource Estimate for East Zone at Roughrider.
2. 43-101 Compliant Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) on the entire
Roughrider deposit
3. Fully delineate the extent of mineralization at the new discovery in
Hole 667
The East Zone and
the new discovery, informally named "Far East", represent
significant upside potential to the overall resource potential of the
Roughrider uranium system, and given the truly world class attributes of
this system, and its location, I remain firm on the potential value it presents
to the Company and its shareholders.
People, properties and money: ppm. Uranium companies will require all three ingredients in
order to survive and move through to the next chapter of the nuclear power
industry. Hathor has all three, and Hathor will be there when the dust
settles. Thank you for your patience. News will continue to flow as our
winter programs come to their end. We will balance the need to preserve
capital while moving forward on key milestones.
Sincerely,
Dr. Michael Gunning, President, CEO & Director for Hathor Exploration
Ltd.
Hathor's Field Programs, Athabasca Basin, Winter 2011
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Roughrider
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Henday
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Russell
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