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Valor Resources Limited (Valor) or (the Company) (ASX:VAL) is pleased to advise that it has completed the interpretation of airborne gravity gradiometry survey data at the Hook Lake Uranium Project situated on the eastern flank of the Athabasca Basin (see Figure 2).
HIGHLIGHTS
- Eleven new targets identified from the recently completed airborne gravity gradiometry (AGG) survey:
- On-ground field checking of gravity targets completed in August.
- Follow up field program proposed including radon and geochemical surveys over new gravity targets.
- Final assay results received for Hook Lake diamond drilling from earlier in the year.
- Anomalous results in three of the six holes drilled at the S-Zone prospect.
- Cluff Lake drilling permits have been received
- Surprise Creek ground-based program to recommence this month, with assays pending from previous work this quarter. Significant uranium occurrences were identified and follow up work is about to commence.
Figure 1: Hook Lake Gravity Targets identified through airborne gravity survey
The Company completed an airborne gravity gradiometry survey in May-June this year and following an interpretation of the data, eleven new targets have been defined (see Figure 1). The airborne gravity survey was designed to identify gravity lows. The hydrothermally clay altered host rocks associated with unconformity uranium deposits will have a lower density than the surrounding rocks and will present as gravity lows.
A site visit has also been completed to review the airborne gravity survey targets and assess the local geology. Follow-up work in the form of radon surveys and lake sediment sampling are currently being planned over the highest-priority targets.
Final assay results have now been received from the diamond drilling program completed earlier this year, details of which were released in the ASX announcement dated 11 April 2022 and titled “Initial Drill program hits elevated radioactivity and associated alteration at Hook Lake Uranium Project”. The assay results are within expectations based on the handheld scintillometer readings and downhole gamma survey results which were reported in the announcement dated 11 April 2022. The best result returned was in DDHL22-002 with 2.5m from 105.5m @ 160ppm U3O8.
Executive Chairman George Bauk commented “The assay results of the Hook Lake drilling program are within the boundaries expected and highlight uranium mineralisation at depth. These results coupled with the exciting new 11 targets developed using the recently flown airborne gravity survey provides the company with potential drill targets at the Hook Lake project. This area has had limited exploration with particular reference to modern exploration techniques and we will follow up with on ground exploration activities to assist with the ranking of these targets for drilling in the near future.”
“This part of the Athabasca Basin is the focus of a significant amount of uranium exploration activity at the moment. Most recently we have seen a new IPO with a project to the north of Hook Lake about to hit the ASX, and both 92 Energy and Baselode Energy completing significant drilling campaigns at their new Gemini/ACKIO discovery about 30km north of our S-Zone prospect.”
“We have an exciting portfolio of assets located around key existing and historical mining centres of the Basin. Hook Lake and Hidden Bay are close to the McArthur River, Cigar Lake and the Rabbit Lake mines, our Cluff Lake project is next to the historic Cluff Lake deposit and Surprise Creek is near the Beaverlodge uranium district. Our efforts in 2022 have been significant, comprising extensive data reviews of historical exploration, conducting a number of field programs, several large airborne surveys and a drill program at Hook Lake. What we have uncovered is a significant number of uranium targets on our properties that ultimately require drilling. With the abundance of new targets we have generated, we now need to prioritise them, which is difficult when they are of such high quality.”
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This article includes content from Valor Resources Limited, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
VAL:AU
Boss Set to Ship First U308 from Honeymoon
Highlights
- Startup production exceeding ramp-up schedule per the feasibility study (FS) estimates
- NIMCIX columns 2 and 3 on target for commissioning in Q3 and Q4, respectively in 2024
- Commissioning continues to advance, with key metrics remaining ahead of FS estimates:
- oWellfields continue to average 80 - 100mg/L vs FS estimate of 47mg/L (~100% uplift)
- oIon Exchange loaded resin recoverability remains at 100%
- oResin loading normalising at FS estimate of 27 g/L
- oElution performance exceeding FS estimate at 7 – 9 g/L
- First uranium sale to occur with revenue being received this quarter
- Boss remains highly leveraged to rising uranium price
Boss will now make its first delivery to European nuclear utilities under its existing sales contracts, with revenue to be received in the current quarter.
With NIMCIX Column 1 performing to expectations and construction of Columns 2 and 3 on track for completion in the September and December quarters, 2024 respectively, Boss expects production to total at least ~850,000lbs of U308 by June 30, 2025, in line with its Feasibility Study schedule1.
Boss Managing Director Duncan Craib said:“The start-up phase at Honeymoon is proceeding comfortably to plan, with all the key metrics running in line with, or exceeding, the forecasts contained in the Feasibility Study schedule.
“Construction of the second and third columns is also advancing well, ensuring we are on track to continue increasing our production rates. Total production in FY26 is set to meet or exceed our feasibility study forecasts at 1.63Mlb. The addition of columns 4, 5 and 6 are forecast to further increase the production rate to nameplate capacity of 2.45Mlb/annum by year three.”
Figure 1: Drummed uranium ready for first shipment
Figure 2: Construction of columns 2 and 3 nearing completion to increase Honeymoon's production profile
Production update
Operational focus over the coming months remains on optimisation of the ion exchange, elution, precipitation and drying and packing processes.
Wellfield performance continues to impress, with tenors from individual wellfields into the PLS averaging 80 - 100 mg/L. Honeymoon’s feasibility study assumed PLS grade of 47 mg/L based on results from the project’s previous operation. Boss is managing the grade of uranium being leached to maximise wellfield recoveries.
Consumption of reagents in the wellfields of sulphuric acid and ferric (pH and Eh) are normalising as per FS expectations. The lixiviant chemistry, as proved during the field leach trial, continues to demonstrate superior performance at commercial throughput rates. The increased leach efficiency leads to a more efficient loading on the ion exchange resin, effectively lowering operating costs as less reagents and power are required per drum of uranium.
Stripping of uranium from the loaded resin continues to be virtually 100%, also demonstrating that the ion exchange process is working as designed, resulting in a high-grade concentrated eluate greater than 7-9 g/L.
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This article includes content from Boss Energy Limited, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
Lo Herma ISR Uranium Project, Resource Drilling Funded
HIGHLIGHTS
- Upcoming Q3 resource drilling is fully funded
- Drilling will target expansion and upgrade of the current Inferred Mineral Resource Estimate of 5.71 Mlbs U3O8 at average 630ppm
- Drilling to commence in the coming weeks - starting late July or early August
- Planned rights entitlement offer to all shareholders on the same terms as the recent placement - details to be provided in due course
As previously advised on 2nd of May 2024, the planned 2024 drilling permit at Lo Herma allows for up to 76 drill hole locations including construction of up to 5 groundwater monitoring wells. This next phase of drilling will focus on expanding the resource areas and where possible, upgrading the current mineral resource classification (Table 1). Collection of important data including, hydrogeologic parameters of the mineralised aquifers and collection of rock core samples for metallurgical testing will be also prioritised. GTI intends to mobilise drilling rigs to Lo Herma as soon as the activity is fully permitted which is anticipated to be during late July or early August 2024.
Following completion of the 2024 drill program at Lo Herma, GTI intends to publish an updated mineral resource estimate and exploration target range for the project. The Company expects that the updated mineral resource estimate will support near-term development of a Scoping Study to demonstrate the economic potential of the project.
GTI Executive Director Bruce Lane commented, “We are pleased and excited to have received investor support and funding to continue moving forward with our planned resource expansion drilling at Lo Herma. Matt and the team in Wyoming have put us in a great position to complete the drilling program this quarter, with a revised mineral resource estimate to be rapidly advanced post-drilling. This work prepares GTI for a potential Lo Herma scoping study which we hope to commence later this year on the basis that we can significantly grow the uranium resource estimate to a similar scale to ISR uranium mines currently being constructed or planned in Wyoming at Ur-Energy’s Shirley Basin project & Encore’s Energy’s Gas Hills project.”
FIGURE 1. GTI WYOMING PROJECT LOCATIONS
LO HERMA GEOLOGIC SUMMARY
The Lo Herma project is located on the southern end of the west flank of the Powder River Basin (PRB), a regional asymmetric synclinal basin hosting a sedimentary rock sequence of about 15,000 feet in the deeper portions of the basin. The basin is bounded by the Bighorn Mountains on the west, the Black Hills to the east, and the Casper Arch, Laramie Mountains, and Hartville Uplift along the southern margin. Along the edges of the basin, progressively older sedimentary units outcrop at the surface as you move away from the synclinal axis of the basin.
The target host geology for Lo Herma project is located in and around the contact of the Eocene Wasatch Formation (Wasatch) and the Paleocene Fort Union Formation (Fort Union).
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This article includes content from GTI Energy, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
