# Source note — Ur-Energy Shirley Basin first uranium shipment (2026-08-23)

## Selected source-card
**Article:** `blog/articles/ur-energy-shirley-basin-first-uranium-shipment-source-card.html`  
**Evidence label:** official company release plus World Nuclear News trade reporting; mine/fuel-chain operating milestone, not a reactor deployment, fuel contract for an SMR, or investment recommendation.

## Official/company source
1. **Ur-Energy — “Ur-Energy Announces First Shipment of Uranium from Shirley Basin Mine, Wyoming”**  
   URL: https://www.ur-energy.com/news-media/press-releases/detail/410/ur-energy-announces-first-shipment-of-uranium-from-shirley  
   Reader capture: `research/energy/ur-energy-shirley-basin-first-uranium-shipment-source-card-2026-08-23/source_official_ur_energy_shirley_basin.md`  
   Key anchors used:
   - Ur-Energy says that on **August 19, 2026**, it made the first shipment of uranium from its Shirley Basin mine to its Lost Creek processing plant in Wyoming.
   - The company frames the event as the start of full operations at Shirley Basin and a transition to a multi-asset domestic U.S. uranium producer.
   - The release says Shirley Basin moved from construction decision to production in roughly two and a half years.
   - The shipment is part of ISR mine-to-processing-plant operations; it is not a reactor-fuel delivery or power project.

## Trade/reporting source
2. **World Nuclear News — “Ur-Energy makes first shipment from Wyoming uranium project”**  
   URL: https://world-nuclear-news.org/articles/ur-energy-makes-first-shipment-from-wyoming-uranium-project  
   Reader capture: `research/energy/ur-energy-shirley-basin-first-uranium-shipment-source-card-2026-08-23/source_trade_world_nuclear_news_shirley_basin.md`  
   Key anchors used:
   - WNN reports the first shipment from Shirley Basin and describes the project’s transition to full operations.
   - WNN says loaded ion exchange resin from Shirley Basin is transported about **190 miles** to Lost Creek for processing, drying and packaging as U3O8.
   - WNN notes a capacity context: Shirley Basin has nameplate capacity of about **one million pounds U3O8 per year**, while Lost Creek can process roughly **two million pounds U3O8 per year**.

## Editorial cautions
- Do not overclaim this as delivered SMR fuel, HALEU supply, utility fuel procurement, data-centre power, mine electrification, or a uranium-price forecast.
- The public record supports first shipment / production ramp-up at a U.S. ISR uranium mine. Conversion, enrichment, fabrication, reactor loading and power delivery are separate downstream gates.
- Ur-Energy is publicly traded; any market implication must be framed as infrastructure context only.
- Not investment advice.