Uranium Resources has ended a two-year fling with the ASX, delisting after attempts to raise money through the Australian market failed.

The company will remain on the NASDAQ, trading under its new name Westwater Resources.

Attempts to raise capital in Australia in 2016 failed due to lack of interest, Uranium Resources (ASX:URI) said.

Combined with poor liquidity and a 70 per cent decrease in local shareholders, the $50,000 a year it cost to stay on the ASX wasn’t worth it.

“[Uranium Resources] average trading volume on the ASX is approximately 1369 shares daily, which has a value of around $US2000,” the company said. “By contrast, the company’s 30-day average trading volume on NASDAQ is approximately 346,790 shares daily, which has a value of around $US500,00.”

Uranium Resources (ASX:URI) only trades CHESS Depositary Interests (CDIs) on the ASX. It said the number of local CDI holders had dropped from 31 per cent when it listed them in November 2015, to 1.6 per cent at the end of June.

Uranium Resources will officially delist on October 20.

The miner is refocusing on a growing lithium exploration business in Nevada and Utah. It still has two idled uranium processing plants and projects in Texas, a project in Turkey, and rights over an area in Mexico, but is waiting for prices to come back up before bringing these back up to speed.

Uranium Resources has struggled for cash during the last two years, negotiating to retire $US8 million in debt and raising $US12.05 million last year, and another $US9.7 million this year. The debt retirement plan was failed this year when a special meeting failed to gain enough shareholder participation.

In the first half of this year it reduced its net loss by 91 per cent to $US795,000 ($992,000) compared to the first half of last year.