CHEYENNE - With indications that Wyoming could see up to 50 new uranium mines, the state agency that oversees mining is shifting workers to handle the workload.

Wyoming has just one producing uranium mine now. Demand for uranium has increased prices substantially over the last few years, prompting renewed interest in uranium mining across the West.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has received 30 applications for new uranium mines, restarts of closed mines and expansions of existing mines as of March 31. Twenty of them are in Wyoming. Among the other states, there are four applications in New Mexico, three in Nebraska, and one each in South Dakota, Arizona and Montana.

Wyoming is considered to have the largest reserve of recoverable uranium ore in the nation.

"With the market price the way it is, there's certainly a resurgence of interest in those known areas where we have uranium ore," said Don McKenzie, administrator of the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality's land quality division.

McKenzie said there is a "good deal" of exploratory drilling going on in the state by companies looking for the best places to locate mines, and a number of other companies are inquiring about the state's mining permit process.

"We feel we have as many as 50 potential facilities that might come into the state," he said.

McKenzie said he is redistributing three full-time positions within his land quality division to handle the increased uranium workload.

His agency regulates all types of mining in the state.

Most of the companies actively exploring for uranium in Wyoming are anticipating mining operations that use the in-situ process to extract the ore. The process involves flushing uranium ore to the surface by pumping a liquid solution underground.

The extracted uranium ore is then transformed into yellowcake, a refined uranium oxide used in the production of uranium fuel.