ERA Energy Resources Of Australia Limited

   By Ross Kelly 
 

SYDNEY--Energy Resources of Australia Ltd. (ERA.AU) on Thursday booked a 59.9 million Australian dollar (US$61.7 million) net loss for the first half as it winds down operations at its depleted Ranger pit in the Northern Territory.

The figure was still an improvement on the A$121.7 million net loss booked for the same period a year earlier, when operations were suspended due to wet weather. Production at Ranger, the world's second-biggest uranium mine by output as recently as 2010, will cease at the end of 2012 when ERA will rely on selling stockpiles.

The uranium miner, majority owned by Rio Tinto PLC (RIO.AU), said it is still working on a A$120 million "exploration decline" at the nearby Ranger 3 Deeps deposit to test its suitability for a new underground mine. A final investment decision on the project isn't expected until 2014.

-Write to Ross Kelly at Ross.Kelly@wsj.com

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