"So what other costs are you implying, or are you not sure of your query?"
HS - I am totally sure about my query, thank you very much!
I have had another look at the presentation and the definition of 'total operating costs' and it definitely refers to cost of goods sold. In other words, the expected sales minus cost of goods sold (what the presentation calls 'total operating costs' ) = gross profit. Then you have all the other costs that a company such as this has to cover (either from free cash flow or loans/equity raisings) - such as on-going exploration and evaluation, legal expenses, head office salaries and costs, consultant costs (e.g. permitting consultants), NRC costs, lease fees, interest, head office insurances (pi, legal liability) etc.
If you look at Ur Energy's last Qtr, for example, they sold 110,000 lbs of U at an average price of $61.12 - for an income of $6.1M (net of direct taxes). The cost of sales (for all those items listed in Strata's definition of 'total operating costs') was $3.2M - resulting in a Gross Profit of $$2.9M.
I'm afraid that is where your 'simple maths' ended. But why? What about those other 'operational cost overheads' I mentioned above. For Ur-Energy in Qtr 1 2014, they amounted to $3.9M - mainly for 'exploration and evaluation' and 'general and administrative'. The major other (non-operational) expense was 'interest expense'.
In effect the total operational cost per lb for Ur-Energy in Qtr 1 was $65 per lb, compared to the averaged realized price of $54.40.
The per lb costs will decline as the operation ramps up - but they will have to come down hard for $45/lb to be an attractive proposition.
We need a sentiment change - and a solid bounce in the U price - and patience.
PEN Price at posting:
2.5¢ Sentiment: None Disclosure: Held
