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McCleary's midnight pegging claim dismissed; plans appeal
27-February-07 by AAP
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A mining developer who pegged a midnight stake on a billion dollar uranium site in the Northern Territory outback has lost the right to keep his claim.

But the Perth businessman said he would appeal the decision by the NT Supreme Court, as he declared one round lost but not the battle.

Norm McCleary was fighting the territory government to keep a claim over the Angela and Pamela uranium sites, estimated to contain more than 12,000 tonnes of uranium oxide worth up to $2.5 billion.

Crown land reservations on the deposits near Alice Springs officially ended at midnight on December 7, and Mr McCleary claimed he outfoxed at least six global mining corporations and up to 40 other hopefuls when he hammered his pegs into the soil under a full moon that night.

Companies who emailed their applications to the government included Cameco of Canada, Energy Resources of Australia, Uranium Equities, U308, Paladin Resources and Energy Metals.

But the NT government argued Mr McCleary had not obtained permission from the mining warden before entering the land and staking his claim.

In the Northern Territory Supreme Court in Darwin today, Justice Trevor Riley dismissed Mr McCleary's case over the Angela and Pamela sites, saying he "did not intend to apply for an exploration licence".

"I reject the evidence of Mr McCleary as to his state of mind," he said in his 33-page judgment.

"I did not find him to be a satisfactory witness... there can be no doubt Mr McCleary was aware of the need for approval and the importance of the approval."

Mr Riley said Mr McCleary had adopted a "scattergun approach" when he challenged the mining warden's refusal and that he had sought to exploit "a loophole in the scheme" to obtain an advantage over others who had an interest in the mineral potential of the land.

But the judge did find the NT Mines Department should consider a mineral lease application made by Mr McCleary over deposit RO1103 in Alice Springs.

From his home in Perth today, Mr McCleary said he had "a little less than half" of what he wanted.

"We've had a hit and a miss," he said.

Asked if he would lodge an appeal, Mr McCleary said: "Of Course.

"This is only the first battle in rather a large war. We will appeal before the Supreme Court in Darwin and then we will take it to the High Court if needed.

"We have a very, very good case. This has just been heard in a Northern Territory court in front of a Northern Territory judge."

Two weeks ago, junior mining company Segue Resources bought 50 per cent of McCleary's stake. It paid $220,000 in cash and 2.3 million in shares for access to the deposits.

Should he have won the case, Mr McCleary would have also received 7.5 million additional shares and 7.5 million options.