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New Uranium Mining Projects - Czech Republic   flag

(last updated 12 Mar 2022)

General · Brzkov · Osečná-Kotel · Stráž pod Ralskem ·

> See also Issues for: Operating Mines · Decommissioning Projects · Legislation & Regulations
> See also Data for: Deposits, Proposed and Active Mines · Old Mines and Decommissioning

The following companies are performing uranium prospection and/or exploration in the Czech Republic: Kaboko Mining Ltd (formerly Uran Ltd)

Uranium mining in the Czech Republic is opposed by Calla , Strana Zelených Janův Důl , Naše Podještědí

 

General

Czech government pursues restart of uranium mining in the country

Despite the high cost for the reclamation of former uranium mining and processing in the country, the Czech Ministry of Industry and Trade is preparing to continue it. Despite very small reserves, which do not have a significant chance to contribute to our energy security, the state-owned company DIAMO continues to obtain permission from the Ministry of the Environment to explore the Brzkov uranium deposit in the Vysocina region in order to prepare for the opening of a new uranium mine. Together with the new uranium treatment plant, it would require an investment of several billion crowns. In the future, uranium reserves in the North Bohemian Cretaceous, which can be mined again by chemical leaching, are also examined. (Calla Mar. 10, 2022)

Czech president proposes resumption of uranium mining in Jáchymov

According to President Miloš Zeman it would be worth to examine the possibility of resumption of uranium mining in Jáchymov. The uranium price has increased tenfold in recent years, and the Czech Republic is the only country in the European Union, where the depoits are, Zeman said during his visit to the Karlovy Vary Region.
According to Zeman, a restart of mining could be one of the ways to revive the economy in this part of the Karlovy Vary Region.
The Green Party responded by Zeman's words, that, according to Ux Consulting Company, the uranium price increased from 2004 to 2007, but then began to decline sharply. Green Party chairman Ondrej Liska Zeman sharply criticizes the idea and stresses in this context the damage of "tens of billions of crowns caused by mining uranium in the Czech Republic, as well as the contamination of groundwater in the volume of the Slapska dam."
The uranium mines in Jáchymov became notorious for the employment of political prisoners. Mining ended in the mid-sixties. (ČTK Jan. 15, 2014)

 

Ploužnice area exploration

Uranium exploration permit denied in Ploužnice oblast: On Nov. 15, 2012, the Czech Ministry of Environment rejected the request by Urania Mining to establish an exploration area to search for uranium in the Ploužnice oblast in the Liberec region (North Bohemia). Exploration was planned in Ploužnice pod Ralskem and Hradčany nad Ploučnicí. (Naše Podještědí Nov. 15, 2012)

 

Czech government considers new uranium mines near Jihlava and near Liberec

The Czech government proposes to assess the possibility of uranium mining at Brzkov and Horní Věžnice near Jihlava. In addition, in situ leach mining of uranium is considered in the Liberec region (North Bohemia).
But environmental association Calla warned that uranium mining causes environmental problems and will be very costly. (ČTK July 19, 2012)

 

Russia's Rosatom ready to mine uranium in Czech Republic

Russian nuclear consortium Rosatom is ready to participate in uranium mining projects in the Czech Republic, its president Sergey Kiriyenko announced on Monday (Oct. 24). (RIA Novosti Oct. 24, 2011)
From 1946 to 1989, the Soviet Union had mined a total of approx. 100,000 t U in then Czechoslovakia. The Czech government is still struggling to reclaim the environmental legacy from this period, see details.

 

Updated Czech Energy Concept promotes resumption of uranium mining

The Updated Czech Energy Concept released by the Czech Ministry of Industry and Trade (MPO) on Oct. 13, 2009, calls for the resumption of uranium mining in the Czech republic "to enhance energy security, self-sufficiency and keep the energy import dependency at an acceptable level".
> View MPO release / download Energy Concept (in Czech)
The current policy, on the contrary, foresees the shutdown of the last uranium mine at Rožná within three years.

 

Uran Ltd tests uranium recovery potential from Příbram uranium mine waste dumps

On July 24, 2007, Uran Ltd announced that trial sorting of waste rock produced from the former Příbram uranium mines is planned to commence in early August 2007.
Over 80,000 tonnes of U3O8 was produced from Příbram underground mines between 1957 and 1984. Ore and waste rock were crushed underground during mining at Příbram, and about 60 million tonnes of crushed waste rock were deposited in a number of surface dumps around Příbram. Historical records suggest that two of these dumps, each of about 5 million tonnes, may contain elevated levels of uranium due to sorting procedures at the time.
Czech company EcoInvest s.r.o. currently sorts waste material derived from the Příbram mines through its ore crushing and sorting facility at Příbram to produce road gravel, after extraction of radioactive material which is currently treated as waste. Uran Limited has agreed with EcoInvest to carry out trial sorting of a 10,000 cubic metre parcel of waste rock to evaluate the potential for commercial production of a uranium-bearing concentrate. Agreement in principle has been reached with state enterprise Diamo to toll treat any economic concentrates produced from sorting at Příbram, through Diamo's Rožná uranium plant.

 

Brzkov project (Bohemian-Moravian Highlands)

> View deposit info
> Opposition: Naše budoucnost bez uranu, z. s. (Our future without uranium)

Environmental Ministry rejects determination of exploration area for uranium near Věžnice: On Thursday (Jan. 21), after nine years, the Ministry of the Environment rejected Urania Mining's request to determine an exploration area for uranium ore prospects near Věžnice in the Jihlava region. (ČTK Jan. 25, 2021)
> Download: Ministry Decision, Jan. 21, 2021 (232kB PDF - in Czech)

Group opposes reopening of uranium exploration and mining at Brzkov: The Ministry of Industry and Trade is preparing to resume inefficient and dirty uranium mining in the Czech Republic. The state enterprise DIAMO asked the Ministry of the Environment to determine the exploration area for exploration of the exclusive deposit of radioactive minerals Brzkov in order to prepare the opening of this deposit. For this purpose, an oral hearing is held at the Municipal Office in Brzkov near Jihlava.
The application is contrary to the Government's Raw Material Policy, and the public interest in the eventual mining of such a small amount of uranium ore from its underground cannot exceed the interest of the inhabitants of the affected municipalities in a healthy environment. Consequently, Calla - the Environmental Protection Association, as party to the proceedings, proposed to reject the application. (Calla Dec. 11, 2019)

Mayors of four municipalities oppose Brzkov uranium mine project: The mayors of the municipalities of Přibyslav, Brzkov, Věžnice and Polná called state company DIAMO and the Minister of Industry and Trade to stop the procedure for expansion of the protected deposit area, otherwise they would take legal action. (iDNES Apr. 14, 2016)

Communities and residents demand participation in process for delineation of areas reserved for mineral development at Brzkov: On Mar. 18, 2016, about 7 dozen people protested in Brzkov against the alleged arrogance of the Minister of Industry and Trade (MPO) Jan Mládek (ČSSD). Municipalities and cities will turn to the government to demand that they, together with the landowners, become parties to the extension of the protected deposit area. (denik.cz Mar. 19, 2016)

Czech Cabinet approves preparation of study on possible uranium mining in Brzkov: The government on Monday (Dec. 22) approved the proposal by Industry Minister Jan Mladek (CSSD) to prepare a study on any uranium mining in Brzkov (Jihlava), according to information on the website of the Cabinet . The local group Our future without uranium and environmental organization Calla sharply criticized the government for inducing more mining and water pollution. (Deník Dec. 23, 2014)

Petition against Brzkov uranium mine project supported by over 1,500 people: The opponents of uranium mining in Brzkov concluded the collection of signatures for a petition, which will be sent to the Prime Minister and the government. It is assumed that the petition was supported by over 1,500 people. (Deník Sep. 26, 2014)
At seventeen hundred people signed a petition against the start of mining uranium ore at Brzkov in the Jihlava. The Brzkov-based society Naše budoucnost bez uranu, z. s. (Our future without uranium) sent the sheets with the signatures to the Government Office this week. (Deník Oct. 20, 2014)

Demonstration against reopening of Brzkov uranium mine: On Sunday (Sep. 7), Brzkov witnessed a protest march in which people expressed opposition to the possible mining of uranium in the deposit near the village. 150 people came. (Deník Sep. 8, 2014)

Town council's opposition to reopening of Brzkov uranium mine continues: The 2008 resolution of the town council refusing any uranium mining operations still applies, according to Brzkov mayor Petr Pometlo. (iDnes Apr. 3, 2014)

Czech government considers re-opening of Brzkov uranium mine: The Czech government is considering plans to re-open a uranium mine near Jihlava after deposits at the country's sole currently operating Rožná mine are exhausted. During his visit to the site on Monday (Mar. 31), Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka said the government was ready to support future uranium mining which would create hundreds of jobs in the region.
State-owned mining firm Diamo would like to continue extracting uranium even after economical reserves at the Rožná mine, some 50 km northwest of Brno, are depleted. Rožná is the only operational uranium mine in central Europe but its remaining deposits of around 500 tonnes will be exhausted in several years' time. When that happens, Diamo would like to continue mining at Brzkov, a site near Jihlava with an estimated 3,000 to 4,000 tonnes of uranium ore. The firm says it would take some six or seven years before the launch of operations there; mining would go on for about 16 years, providing "hundreds of jobs", the company said. The Brzkov deposit, located some 300 metres beneath the surface, was prospected in the late 1980s when over 60 tonnes of uranium ore was extracted.
Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka said if no major objections to the plan were raised, the government should support the idea to maintain employment levels in the region. Mr Sobotka also suggested that technologies guaranteeing the least possible environmental impact from mining would have to be used. However, plans to mine for uranium at Brzkov have met with opposition from environmentalists and local communities. Evard Sequens of the NGO Calla questioned the effectiveness of the plan. The government would have to invest billions to reopen the mine and to extend the capacity of existing processing facilities. (Radio Prague Mar. 31, 2014)
The mined ore will be transported by rail to the Dolní Rožínka mill (near the Rožná mine) for processing. (Deník Mar. 31, 2014)

The Czech government proposes to assess the possibility of uranium mining at Brzkov and Horní Věžnice near Jihlava.
But environmental association Calla warned that uranium mining causes environmental problems and will be very costly. (ČTK July 19, 2012)

On Apr. 23, 2008, a Czech town council turned down an Australian mining company's call that it be allowed to launch exploration for reserves of uranium in return for a cash windfall. Přibyslav councillors rejected an offer from Australian company Uran Ltd for it to be allowed to explore what are believed to be rich uranium deposits in the centre of the country, the ČTK news agency reported. The Australian company offered 800,000 koruna (31,000 euros, 46,300 US dollars) a year while exploration work continued and 1.6 million koruna a year when commercial mining commenced. It wanted council backing in order to overturn previous environment ministry rejections of its exploration bids. Přibyslav was one of the company's main targets because around 7,500 tonnes of uranium is believed to be present at nearby Brzkov. (AFP Apr. 23, 2008)

On Jan. 4, 2008, Uran Ltd announced that the Czech Ministry of Environment has declined Uran Ltd's Brzkov exploration license application. Uran Ltd has lodged an appeal against the decision.

State mining company Diamo, which submitted an analysis of renewed uranium mining to the ministry, now plans to reopen a mine in Brzkov-Veznice. (Prague Business Journal, Feb. 18, 1999)

 

Stráž pod Ralskem (North Bohemia)

> View decommissioning issues

Residents outraged about government proposal for restart of in situ leach uranium mining at Stráž pod Ralskem, seek legal ban

The residents of the Podještědí area are outraged about the government's plan to renew uranium mining near Stráž pod Ralskem. They fear that it would ruin the landscape and threaten groundwater. The local mayors want to prevent the return of uranium in situ leaching.
The resumption of extraction is considered in a several weeks old government document called Raw Material Policy of the Czech Republic. It considers the area highly prospective for uranium. "It is clear that the largest amount of reserves are located in deposits at Hamr na Jezeře, Podještědí, Osečná-Kotel and Břevniště pod Ralskem," it is said in the government document.
Representatives of [local] governments and mining opponents now want to initiate a law that would not allow the return of in situ leaching in the surroundings of Stráž pod Ralskem. Mayors and mining opponents are concerned that the government approved the document without consulting residents and representatives of the communities. (iDNES Aug. 23, 2012)
> Download Naše Podještědí press release Aug. 22, 2012 (PDF - in Czech)
> View Energy policy website : Uranium mining (in Czech)
> Download Mineral Policy (PDF - in Czech)

NGOs slam proposal for restart of in situ leach uranium mining at Stráž pod Ralskem in view of exorbitant reclamation cost still to be covered

In view of the Minister of Industry's request to provide a total of 32 billion crowns [EUR 1.29 billion] for the groundwater cleanup at the former Stráž pod Ralskem uranium in situ leach site, four NGOs slammed proposals to restart in situ leach mining at the site. (Calla, Hnutí DUHA, Zelený kruh, Naše Podještědí, Oct. 5, 2011)

Diamo submits proposal for restart of uranium mining at historic mine site of Stráž pod Ralskem

State-owned company Diamo s.p. has supplied the Czech Ministry of Economics with a proposal to restart uranium mining at Stráž pod Ralskem in North Bohemia, where currently the vast legacy of historic acid in-situ leach uranium mining is being dealt with (view details). Mining methods under consideration include underground mining and ... in-situ leaching. So far, Czech government policy has been to shut down uranium mining (currently only being performed at Rožná) sooner or later. (Hospodářské noviny Feb. 2, 2009)

 

Osečná-Kotel uranium deposit (Liberecko, North Bohemia)

> View deposit info
> See also: Strana Zelených Janův Důl · Naše Podještědí (in Czech)

The Czech Ministry of Environment rejected an appeal against the denial of the establishment of an exploration area requested by Urania Mining s.r.o. at Osečná-Kotel. (Naše Podještědí/Calla Mar. 31, 2015)

The Czech Ministry of Environment again rejected the establishment of an exploration area requested by Urania Mining s.r.o. at Osečná-Kotel. (Naše Podještědí Oct. 24, 2014)

On Nov. 29, 2011, Uran Ltd announced a name change to Kaboko Mining Ltd .

On Oct. 13, 2011, Czech Environment Minister Tomáš Chalupa turned down an appeal of Urania Mining s.r.o. against a decision of Oct. 26, 2010, denying the opening of the Osečná-Kotel area for uranium prospection and exploration.
> Download Decision (754k PDF in Czech - Naše Podještědí)

Czech Environment Minister Martin Bursík turned down an appeal of Urania Mining s.r.o. against an earlier decision denying the exploration of the Osečná-Kotel uranium deposit. (MF Dnes Feb. 13, 2009)

On September 20, 2008, 200 people held a demonstration at Kotel at the occasion of the European Uranium Action Day .

On June 7, 2008, 300 people held a demonstration at Osečná against mining of the Osečná-Kotel uranium deposit near Liberec. (ČTK June 7, 2008)

The Czech Ministry of the Environment (MŽP) has denied requests by Urania Mining s.r.o. for the mining of uranium at Osečná-Kotel and Ploužnice near Liberec. The company has lodged appeals against the decisions. (ČTK June 6, 2008)

The Czech Environment Ministry declared the Kotel municipality near Liberec a protected deposit area in which uranium could be mined, the Prima television station reported on Apr. 29, 2008. The deposit contains some 20,000 tonnes of uranium ore, worth billions of crowns. It was Diamo state company that applied that the uranium deposits in the Podještědí area be protected, Prima reported. "We do not plan mining at all," Diamo production deputy director Marian Boehm told Prima. People from local municipalities fear that uranium mining would further harm the environment and force them to move away. (Prague Daily Monitor Apr. 30, 2008)

On April 11, 2008, approximately 100 people gathered in Liberec in front of the local branch of the Environmental Ministry to protest against the securing of the Osečná-Kotel uranium deposit for future mining.

On Jan. 26, 2008, some 300 people gathered near Osečná for another demonstration against the securing of the Osečná-Kotel uranium deposit for future mining. "The Environment Ministry will probably make a decision on the declaration of a protected ore deposit by the end of February. However, neither plot owners, nor municipalities and their inhabitants have the right to participate in the proceedings and interfere in the process under the Communist era's mining law from 1988," protest organiser Josef Jadrný (Greens) explained. "A new law is only being prepared and we demand that the ministry's decision in the case be postponed by the time it takes effect," Jadrný added. (ČTK Jan. 26, 2008)

On Dec. 30, 2007, several hundred people held a demonstration at Osečná against the securing of the Osečná-Kotel uranium deposit for future mining. (ČTK Dec. 30, 2007)

State-owned company Diamo s.p. is attempting to secure the Osečná-Kotel uranium deposit for future open-pit mining. The deposit is located near the former Hamr uranium mine and Stráž uranium mill in North Bohemia. The surrounding communities are opposed to this move, since they are in the process of transforming the area into a recreational area and they are still dealing with the legacy of the large-scale uranium mining carried out during the Cold War era.
If the Environmental Ministry acknowledges the deposit as a "protected deposit", Diamo could start mining after conducting an Environmental Impact Assessment process. (Calla Nov./Dec. 2007)

 

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