Honeymoon over! Boss Energy’s shares plummet 44 per cent on bleak forecast at flagship uranium project

Shares in uranium miner Boss Energy have been pulverised by a poor operational outlook, which came just days after its managing director resigned. Boss finished Monday trade 44 per cent lower at $1.90 a share, wiping out about $622 million worth of value from the Subiaco-based business. June quarterly production figures at its flagship Honeymoon operation were better than analysts had expected, but the company’s forecast for the South Australian site furrowed the brows of investors. Honeymoon’s cash costs are expected to increase this financial year due to “an expected decline in average tenor and an optimised lixiviant chemistry”. Higher tenor essentially equates to higher quality uranium and a lixiviant is a liquid chemical concoction used to extract uranium from ore. “The optimised lixiviant chemistry is expected to be value accretive through improved head-grade and total wellfield recovery but will result in higher specific consumptions and (cash) cost, which has been reflected in the forecast cash cost for FY2026,” Boss stated. A cash cost forecast of between $41 and $45 a pound of drummed uranium has been pencilled in for FY2026, compared to $36/lb for the June quarter. The Honeymoon headaches are expected to continue next financial year. An assessment of wellfield performance since Honeymoon restarted production in April last year has identified some “potential challenges” going forward. “Boss has identified potential challenges that may arise in achieving nameplate capacity as previously outlined in the enhanced feasibility study,” the company stated. “This is largely due to the potential for less continuity of mineralisation and leachability. “An independent review by subject matter experts will commence shortly to determine the extent to which the above affects EFS assumptions. Boss will keep the market informed.” The share price bloodbath comes less than a week after Boss announced its long-serving chief executive Duncan Craib would step down from the role at the end of September. Mr Craib, who has been Boss’ chief since 2017, will then join the board as a non-executive director from the start of next year. Chief operating officer Matt Dusci — a former CEO of IGO — is set to take the reins from Mr Craib. In May last year, just weeks after Honeymoon produced maiden uranium, Mr Craib sold 3.75 million of his 4.24 million shares for an average of $5.63 each to rake in $21.1m. Boss has since lost more than 60 per cent of its value. The company is the third most shorted stock on the Australian Securities Exchange, with fellow Perth-based uranium miner Paladin Energy holding first place. Shares in Paladin on Wednesday lost more than 11 per cent after its production guidance also disappointed the market. Paladin produces uranium from its Langer Heinrich mine in Namibia.