• Global Atomic delayed the start-up of Niger’s Dasa uranium processing plant by one year to the second half of 2027.
• Border closures with Benin and financing delays disrupted equipment imports and project funding.
• The project requires an initial investment of $424 million, largely expected from external debt financing.

Niger nationalized its only operating uranium mine in June 2025 after the state took control from French group Orano. Among projects that could support national uranium output, the Dasa uranium mine developed by Canada’s Global Atomic ranks as a key asset, although its development has faced delays.

Global Atomic postponed the commissioning of the Dasa uranium processing plant by one year. The company now targets the second half of 2027 instead of the second half of 2026. Global Atomic cited the closure of the border with Benin and difficulties in securing financing for mine construction as the main reasons for the delay.

Since 2023 and the coup led by General Abdourahamane Tiani, now Niger’s president, the Sahel country has lost access to the port of Cotonou in Benin. The port previously served as the most reliable and direct route for Niger’s imports and exports. Benin initially closed the shared border, and Niamey later maintained the status quo while accusing Cotonou of cooperating with France amid strained relations with Paris.

Global Atomic told Agence Ecofin that it therefore favored “other routes” to continue importing equipment required for the Dasa project. The company said these alternatives took “more time and proved more costly.” While the company did not disclose the specific routes, the border closure with Benin has made the port of Lomé in Togo the primary transit hub for Nigerien trade. This option increases transit times and requires passage through areas of Burkina Faso controlled by jihadist groups.

Beyond logistical constraints, the July 2023 coup in Niger also disrupted the project’s financing process. Global Atomic plans to raise most of the required capital through debt. A 2024 feasibility study estimated initial investment needs at $424 million, with a U.S. bank expected to provide the bulk of the funding.

“Following the coup in Niger in July 2023, this financing was delayed and only recently passed the first stage of the bank’s formal approval process […] With the approval process now underway, we aim to start processing in the second half of 2027,” a company spokesperson said in an email.

This revised timeline still depends on securing the financing. The U.S. bank continues to review Global Atomic’s request, but no decision has yet confirmed loan approval. The company is therefore exploring other options including “an alternative financing solution involving the purchase of a minority stake” in Global Atomic’s Niger-based Dasa project subsidiary and is investigating the necessity for Canadian Government approval of this financing option.

Niger ranked as the world’s eighth-largest uranium producer in 2023, according to the World Nuclear Association. The country produced 1,130 tonnes of uranium, representing about 2% of global output.

This article was initially published in French by Emiliano Tossou

Adapted in English by Ange Jason Quenum