Uranium miner Energy Resources Australia is trying to move forward from its year from hell, approving $220 million worth of spending on a new brine concentrator for its operations near Kakadu National Park.

ERA, which is majority owned by resources giant Rio Tinto, today revealed a loss of $153 million for the year to December, a 427 per cent decline on the year before.

ERA shares shed 6 cents in early trade, or 3.9 per cent, to be worth $1.47.

The woeful result was no surprise, after a year dogged by torrential rain, water management problems, pit closures and asset downgrades at its flagship Ranger Mine in the Northern Territory.

There has been little sign of those problems abating, after record rain fell near Ranger during December, creating more water management problems within the pit.

Financial commitments to the eventual closure and rehabilitation of the Ranger mine have increased again, rising another $15 million compared to the most recent advice.

ERA managment are trying to turn around the ailing miner, with exploration continuing this year into an underground extention of the open pit, known as 'Ranger Deeps'. Exploration to date has been mixed.

The new brine concentrator shapes as the other growth strategy, with the device expected to be in operation by the second half of 2013.