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Cosa Resources Corp. (TSXV: COSA) (OTCQB: COSAF) (FSE: SSKU) ("Cosa" or the "Company") is pleased to announce its summer exploration plans for its portfolio of Athabasca Basin uranium projects.
Highlights
Cosa Resources (CSE:COSA) advances five uranium projects comprising more than 100,000 hectares of land within or proximal to Saskatchewan’s Athabasca Basin. Each project captures portions of highly prospective northeast trending uranium corridors and district-scale structural corridors, such as the Cable Bay and Grease River Shear Zones and the Larocque Trend.
Supported by a team of technically focused and successful geologists and mining executives, Cosa believes that a combination of new ideas and aggressive exploration in underexplored areas has the potential to yield the next Tier 1 uranium discovery.
Cosa Resources Corp. Athabasca Basin Uranium Exploration ProjectsCosa has strategically assembled a management team with a history of success in the Athabasca Basin. With well over a century of combined uranium experience, Cosa’s management team has been involved with several uranium discoveries in recent years. Chairman Steve Blower was part of the discovery team behind 92 Energy’s Gemini zone, IsoEnergy’s Hurricane deposit, and Denison’s Gryphon deposit. For his role in the Hurricane discovery, he was co-recipient of the AME 2022 Colin Spence Award for excellence in global mineral exploration, alongside fellow Cosa team members Andy Carmichael, Justin Rodko and Craig Parry.
Company Highlights
- More than 100,000 hectares of uranium assets proximal to the Athabasca Basin - the heart of the Canadian uranium mining sector
- Projects near to or within highly prospective northeast trending uranium corridors and district-scale structural corridors such as the Cable Bay and Grease River Shear Zones and the Larocque Trend
- 100-percent-owned Ursa property covers a large portion of the underexplored Cable Bay Shear Zone uranium corridor
- A management team comprised of technically focused and successful geologists and mining executives with a history of success in the Athabasca Basin
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Cosa Resources Announces Summer Exploration Plans for Athabasca Basin Uranium Projects
Diamond drilling at Ursa to follow up positive winter drilling results and test second high priority target area
Ambient Noise Tomography (ANT) surveys to prioritize strike at Ursa and follow-up airborne survey results at Orion
Airborne Electromagnetic (EM) and Gravity surveying at Aurora and Orbit to advance these shallow, prospective projects toward drill readiness for 2025
Keith Bodnarchuk, President & CEO, commented: "After a successful winter drill program, we are eager to return to the field and continue exploration at the 100% owned Ursa Project. Alongside summer drilling at Ursa, including following up on the exciting results at drill hole UR-24-03, we will be advancing multiple other projects to drill readiness for 2025. With the completion of our oversubscribed C$6.5 million bought deal financing earlier this year, we are fully funded to complete this work and well positioned to take advantage of a strengthening uranium market by expanding our pipeline of exciting drill targets across many of our highly underexplored uranium projects."
Andy Carmichael, VP of Exploration, commented: "We are planning a busy summer season in the southeastern Athabasca with exploration plans that respond to the encouraging results of initial drilling at Ursa and reflect the discovery potential we see in our Orion, Aurora, and Orbit projects. Completing ANT before resuming drilling at Ursa will improve prioritization of existing targets and potentially highlight new target areas on trend. ANT work at Orion will follow-up the prominent, kilometre-scale sandstone hosted conductivity anomaly identified in 2023 and guide future exploration efforts. Work at Aurora and Orbit will advance these prospective projects towards drill readiness, which, despite being within 25 kilometres of the Key Lake Mill, have seen little to no modern exploration."
Ursa and Orion Ambient Noise Tomography Surveys
Ambient Noise Tomography (ANT) surveying is planned at Ursa and Orion beginning in May (Figures 1 to 3). Cosa expects ANT to prove a rapid, low-cost, low-impact method to evaluate broad areas for prospective structures and alteration zones. Using data collected from a grid of compact, standalone sensors to measure naturally occurring seismic activity, ANT produces a three-dimensional model of subsurface seismic wave velocity. As the Athabasca sandstone is relatively homogenous and seismic wave velocity varies with changes in the host rock, velocity variations can be attributed to post-Athabasca faulting and/or alteration zones characteristic of the region's high-grade uranium deposits. Although ANT is relatively new to the Athabasca Basin, recent exploration drilling in the region targeting ANT anomalies has successfully intersected zones of hydrothermal alteration at depth.
At Ursa, ANT will be deployed over the 27-kilometres of conductive strike length hosting the alteration and structure intersected by UR24-03 at Kodiak, the Kodiak North, Smokey, and Panda West target areas, and all three weakly mineralized historical drill holes within the Project (Figure 2). Cosa anticipates preliminary ANT results will influence Ursa summer drilling planned to begin in August.
At Orion, ANT will follow up a prominent zone of anomalous sandstone conductivity identified by Cosa's 2023 MobileMT™ survey. The 4-kilometre-long, 1.4-kilometre-wide anomaly is coincident with flexures in basement conductive trends (Figure 3). Cosa will use ANT to locate seismic velocity anomalies coincident with the conductivity features and to optimize the locations of ground EM surveying used to generate targets for diamond drilling.
Aurora and Orbit Airborne Surveys
Cosa will complete comprehensive airborne electromagnetic (EM) and gravity surveys to advance its Aurora and Orbit properties toward drill readiness for 2025 (Figure 4). EM surveying will be completed by Geotech Ltd.'s helicopter borne VTEM™ Plus system with the objective of identifying basement-hosted conductivity anomalies consistent with prospective graphitic structures and/or large zones of hydrothermal alteration. Gravity surveying will be completed by Xcalibur Multiphysics's Falcon® Airborne Gravity Gradiometer system (AGG) with the objective of identifying gravity anomalies consistent with large zones of hydrothermal alteration and to improve the understanding of basement geology. Top priority drill targets would be gravity low anomalies coincident with basement-hosted conductive features. Airborne surveys commenced in early May.
Ursa Diamond Drilling
Planning is ongoing for summer diamond drilling at Ursa. Drilling is expected to include following-up the broad zone of hydrothermal alteration and post Athabasca structure intersected well above the unconformity by drill hole UR24-03 (Figure 5; see Cosa news release dated April 24, 2024) as well as initial drill testing of a second target area. It is anticipated that ANT survey results will be used to influence drill strategy and targeting.
Figure 1 – Cosa's Portfolio of Athabasca Basin Region Uranium Exploration Properties
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Figure 2 – Ursa ANT Survey Areas over 2023 MobileMT™ Results
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Figure 3 – Orion ANT Survey Area at over 2023 MobileMT™ Results
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Figure 4 – Aurora and Orbit Airborne Survey Areas
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Figure 5 – Cross Section of the Kodiak Target Area (Looking Northeast)
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About Cosa Resources Corp.
Cosa Resources is a Canadian uranium exploration company operating in northern Saskatchewan. The portfolio comprises roughly 209,000 ha across multiple projects in the Athabasca Basin region, all of which are underexplored, and the majority reside within or adjacent to established uranium corridors.
Cosa's award-winning management team has a long track record of success in Saskatchewan. In 2022, members of the Cosa team were awarded the AME Colin Spence Award for their previous involvement in discovering IsoEnergy's Hurricane deposit. Prior to Hurricane, Cosa personnel led teams or had integral roles in the discovery of Denison Mines' Gryphon deposit and 92 Energy's Gemini Zone and held key roles in the founding of both NexGen and IsoEnergy.
Cosa's primary focus through 2024 is initial drilling at our Ursa Project, which captures over 60-kilometres of strike length of the Cable Bay Shear Zone, a regional structural corridor with known mineralization and limited historical drilling. It potentially represents the last remaining eastern Athabasca corridor to not yet yield a major discovery. Modern geophysics completed by Cosa in 2023 identified multiple high-priority target areas characterized by conductive basement stratigraphy beneath or adjacent to broad zones of inferred sandstone alteration – a setting that is typical of most eastern Athabasca uranium deposits. Initial drilling results from Ursa in winter 2024 are positive and include the intersection of a broad zone of alteration with associated structure in the Athabasca sandstone located 250 to 460 metres above the sub-Athabasca unconformity. Follow-up is planned in the second half of 2024.
Qualified Person
The Company's disclosure of technical or scientific information in this press release has been reviewed and approved by Andy Carmichael, P.Geo., Vice President, Exploration for Cosa. Mr. Carmichael is a Qualified Person as defined under the terms of National Instrument 43-101.
Contact
Keith Bodnarchuk, President and CEO
info@cosaresources.ca
+1 888-899-2672 (COSA)
Cautionary Statements
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
The information contained herein contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. "Forward-looking information" includes, but is not limited to, statements with respect to the activities, events or developments that the Company expects or anticipates will or may occur in the future, including, without limitation, planned exploration activities. Generally, but not always, forward-looking information and statements can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates", or "believes" or the negative connotation thereof or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "occur" or "be achieved" or the negative connotation thereof. Forward-looking statements in this news release include, among others, statements relating to: the exploration, development, and production at the Company's mineral projects.
Forward‐looking statements and forward‐looking information relating to any future mineral production, liquidity, enhanced value and capital markets profile of the Company, future growth potential for the Company and its business, and future exploration plans are based on management's reasonable assumptions, estimates, expectations, analyses and opinions, which are based on management's experience and perception of trends, current conditions and expected developments, and other factors that management believes are relevant and reasonable in the circumstances, but which may prove to be incorrect. Assumptions have been made regarding, among other things, the price of uranium and other commodities; no escalation in the severity of public health crises; costs of exploration and development; the estimated costs of development of exploration projects; the Company's ability to operate in a safe and effective manner and its ability to obtain financing on reasonable terms.
These statements reflect the Company's respective current views with respect to future events and are necessarily based upon a number of other assumptions and estimates that, while considered reasonable by management, are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties and contingencies. Many factors, both known and unknown, could cause actual results, performance, or achievements to be materially different from the results, performance or achievements that are or may be expressed or implied by such forward‐looking statements or forward-looking information and the Company has made assumptions and estimates based on or related to many of these factors. Such factors include, without limitation: the Company's dependence on one mineral project; precious metals price volatility; risks associated with the conduct of the Company's mining activities; regulatory, consent or permitting delays; risks relating to reliance on the Company's management team and outside contractors; the Company's inability to obtain insurance to cover all risks, on a commercially reasonable basis or at all; currency fluctuations; risks regarding the failure to generate sufficient cash flow from operations; risks relating to project financing and equity issuances; risks and unknowns inherent in all mining projects; contests over title to properties, particularly title to undeveloped properties; laws and regulations governing the environment, health and safety; the ability of the communities in which the Company operates to manage and cope with the implications of public health crises; the economic and financial implications of public health crises to the Company; operating or technical difficulties in connection with mining or development activities; employee relations, labour unrest or unavailability; the Company's interactions with surrounding communities; the Company's ability to successfully integrate acquired assets; the speculative nature of exploration and development; stock market volatility; conflicts of interest among certain directors and officers; lack of liquidity for shareholders of the Company; litigation risk; the ongoing military conflict around the world; general economic factors; and the factors identified under the caption "Risk Factors" in the Company's management discussion and analysis and other public disclosure documents.
Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking information or implied by forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that forward-looking information and statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated, estimated or intended. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements or information. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or reissue forward-looking information as a result of new information or events except as required by applicable securities laws.
To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/208453
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Cosa Resources Announces Completion of Inaugural Diamond Drilling Program at the 100% Owned Ursa Uranium Project in the Athabasca Basin, Saskatchewan
Cosa Resources Corp. (TSXV: COSA) (OTCQB: COSAF) (FSE: SSKU) ("Cosa" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the completion of the winter 2024 diamond drilling program at its 100% owned Ursa uranium Project in the Athabasca Basin, Saskatchewan ("Ursa" or the "Property").
Highlights
Three holes totalling 3,438 meters completed at the Kodiak target area
Drill hole UR24-03 intersected structures, hydrothermal alteration and minor sulphide mineralization in the Athabasca sandstone several hundred metres above the unconformity
High-strain ductile basement fabrics with late brittle overprint were identified
Sufficient supplies and equipment have been mobilized to conduct an expanded summer program
Keith Bodnarchuk, President and CEO, commented: "Congratulations to Andy and the entire team for safely and effectively completing our inaugural drill program at the 100% owned Ursa project. To intersect encouraging structure and alteration with an initial drill program is a tremendous technical success at such a large and under-explored Project. With the completion of our over-subscribed bought deal financing for $6.5 million in March, we are fully funded for our upcoming summer exploration program consisting of drilling and target refinement at Ursa, while also advancing multiple other projects to drill readiness for 2025. We are eager to have the drill turning again this summer and to continue building off of these encouraging initial results."
Andy Carmichael, VP of Exploration, commented: "Having intersected clear evidence of post-Athabasca structure and hydrothermal alteration, initial drilling results at Ursa exceed our expectations and have upgraded the Kodiak target area and the Project overall. Drill hole UR24-03, the third and final of the program, intersected a broad zone of sandstone alteration containing dravitic structures and sulphides. As structurally controlled dravite and sulphide alteration occur proximal to several Athabasca uranium deposits, these results present a compelling follow-up target for the upcoming summer drilling season. Prior to resuming drilling, we plan to deploy an extensive Ambient Noise Tomography (ANT) survey to assist with strike prioritization and generate additional target areas. We look forward to updating the market with complete summer exploration plans at Ursa and our other projects in the near-term. Finally, we thank Bryson Drilling for their safe and efficient performance on Cosa's inaugural drill program."
Diamond Drilling at Ursa
Three drill holes totalling 3,438 metres were completed during winter 2024 to assess the Kodiak target area for the presence of structure and hydrothermal alteration characteristic of large unconformity-related uranium deposits of the Athabasca Basin. Kodiak is characterized as a complex zone of basement conductivity with several conductors identified by ground-based Stepwise Moving Loop Transient Electromagnetic (SWML-TEM) surveying proximal to a sandstone-hosted conductivity anomaly defined by airborne MobileMT™ surveying. Immediately down-ice of Kodiak are overlapping zones of anomalous illite, uranium, and boron concentrations as defined by historical boulder sampling work (Figure 2 - see Cosa's news released dated March 4th, 2024).
Drill hole parameters are presented in Table 1, and drill hole locations are shown in plan and cross section in Figures 2 and 3, respectively.
Table 1 — Winter 2024 Diamond Drill Hole Parameters
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UR24-01
Drill hole UR24-01 was designed to test a modelled subvertical SWML-TEM conductor proximal to a sandstone conductivity anomaly from the 2023 MobileMT™ survey results. Minor structures and alteration were intersected in the sandstone including a weak breccia with dravite infill from 982.9 to 984.0 metres. The unconformity was intersected at 1,032.0 metres and basement comprised non-conductive metasediments dipping to the northwest. Brittle reactivation of early ductile structures was observed as quartz-carbonate veining within mylonitized paragneiss.
UR24-02
Drill hole UR24-02 targeted a modelled southeast-dipping conductor 400 metres northwest of the UR24-01 target and evaluated a broad width of sandstone between the two holes for favourable alteration and structure. No anomalous results were intersected in the sandstone. Basement comprises northwest dipping, highly strained, locally graphitic and pyritic augen-textured cordierite pelitic gneisses. Minor structures, including graphitic slips and faults, were intersected and a broad zone of weak to moderate sericitization and argillization extends approximately 110 metres below the unconformity, terminating below a cluster of discrete graphitic faults.
UR24-03
Drill hole UR24-03 was collared 920 metres northwest of UR24-02 and drilled southeast at -70° to evaluate a broad width of sandstone for favourable structure and alteration and to further define basement geology in the Kodiak area. Between 181 and 224 metres are several metre-scale structural zones with fracturing and faulting which are variably bleached, silicified, desilicified, and hematitized. Unaltered and unstructured sandstone followed to 536 metres (Figure 4).
A broad zone of anomalous structure and hydrothermal alteration from 536 to 728 metres is pervasively bleached (Figure 5) and hosts fracture- and fault-controlled sulphides, clay, dravite, chlorite, siderite, drusy quartz, and silicification. Minor structures are common in this interval and include slickensided surfaces and faulting (Figures 3 and 6). Notably, from 713.5 to 756 metres are several occurrences of massive to semi-massive dravite including dravite-filled veinlets and breccias comprising bleached and/or hematitized sandstone fragments set in a dravite matrix (Figures 7 and 8). Alteration associated with the dravitic structures is variable and includes drusy quartz, hydrothermal hematite, magnetite, siderite, and sulphides. Below 756 metres, only minor alteration and structure were intersected to the sub-Athabasca unconformity at 1033.5 metres. Basement in UR24-03 comprises high-strain, cordierite-augen pelitic gneiss and lesser semipelitic gneiss. Intermittent sericite alteration is present throughout the basement with intervals of minor graphitic faulting between 1074.5 and 1100.0 metres.
The intersection of a broad zone of structure and hydrothermal alteration in the medial sandstone of UR24-03, including sulphides and dravitic breccia, is considered highly encouraging and has validated the Company's target area selection and drilling strategy. The UR24-03 alteration zone was intersected 250 to 460 metres vertically above the sub-Athabasca unconformity. The down-dip projection of the dravitic zone to the unconformity, located 150 metres northwest of the UR24-03 unconformity intercept, represents a compelling follow-up target for the upcoming summer drilling program.
Next Steps
Additional work is warranted at the Kodiak target area and throughout the Project. All geochemical and most clay spectroscopy results remain pending, and these results will influence follow-up at Kodiak.
To aid in strike prioritization, the evaluation of existing target areas, and the generation of new target areas, Cosa is planning an extensive Ambient Noise Tomography (ANT) survey at Ursa covering the 27-kilometres of conductive strike which hosts the Kodiak, Kodiak North, Smokey, and Panda West target areas (Figure 1). This conductive trend also hosts all three of the weakly mineralized historical drill holes on the Project. ANT has only recently been deployed in the Athabasca Basin and initial results suggest it may be an effective tool for defining large zones of hydrothermal alteration at depth, potentially representing a relatively cost-effective alternative to conventional strike prioritization tools such as DC-Resistivity surveys.
Cosa is also pleased to report that during winter drilling operations the Company utilized the winter access trail to mobilize sufficient fuels, equipment, and supplies to Ursa to conduct the planned ANT surveys and summer drilling with minimal aircraft support.
Figure 1 — Ursa Target Areas Defined by 2023 MMT Survey over Basement Conductivity Model (100 metres Below the Unconformity)
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Figure 2 — Kodiak Target Area with Historical Boulder Sampling Results over Basement Conductivity Model (100 metres Below the Unconformity)
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Figure 3 — Cross Section of the Kodiak Target Area, (Looking Northeast)
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Figure 4 — Example of Unaltered Sandstone from UR24-03 (464.4 - 482.1 metres)
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Figure 5 — Pervasively Bleached Sandstone from UR24-03 (553.7 - 571.3 metres) 450 metres above the sub-Athabasca Unconformity (Figure 6 Area Shown in Green)
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Figure 6 — Slickesided Sandstone Hosting Dravite and Sulphides from UR24-03 (567.5 m, highlighted in Figure 5)
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Figure 7 — Dravitic Stuctures from UR24-03 (713.5 to 715.0 metres), with Detail
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Figure 8 — Dravitic Breccia with Hydrothermal Hematite, Magnetite, and Pyrite from UR24-03 (752.3 m)
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About Cosa Resources Corp.
Cosa Resources is a Canadian uranium exploration company operating in northern Saskatchewan. The portfolio comprises roughly 209,000 ha across multiple projects in the Athabasca Basin region, all of which are underexplored, and the majority reside within or adjacent to established uranium corridors.
Cosa's award-winning management team has a long track record of success in Saskatchewan. In 2022, members of the Cosa team were awarded the AME Colin Spence Award for their previous involvement in discovering IsoEnergy's Hurricane deposit. Prior to Hurricane, Cosa personnel led teams or had integral roles in the discovery of Denison Mines' Gryphon deposit and 92 Energy's Gemini Zone and held key roles in the founding of both NexGen and IsoEnergy.
Cosa's primary focus through 2024 is initial drilling at our Ursa Project, which captures over 60-kilometres of strike length of the Cable Bay Shear Zone, a regional structural corridor with known mineralization and limited historical drilling. It potentially represents the last remaining eastern Athabasca corridor to not yet yield a major discovery. Modern geophysics completed by Cosa in 2023 identified multiple high-priority target areas characterized by conductive basement stratigraphy beneath or adjacent to broad zones of inferred sandstone alteration - a setting that is typical of most eastern Athabasca uranium deposits. Initial drilling results from Ursa in winter 2024 are positive and include the intersection of a broad zone of alteration with associated structure in the Athabasca sandstone located 250 to 460 metres above the sub-Athabasca unconformity. Follow-up is planned in the second half of 2024.
Qualified Person
The Company's disclosure of technical or scientific information in this press release has been reviewed and approved by Andy Carmichael, P.Geo., Vice President, Exploration for Cosa. Mr. Carmichael is a Qualified Person as defined under the terms of National Instrument 43-101.
Contact
Keith Bodnarchuk, President and CEO
info@cosaresources.ca
+1 888-899-2672 (COSA)
Cautionary Statements
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
The information contained herein contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. "Forward-looking information" includes, but is not limited to, statements with respect to the activities, events or developments that the Company expects or anticipates will or may occur in the future, including, without limitation, planned exploration activities. Generally, but not always, forward-looking information and statements can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates", or "believes" or the negative connotation thereof or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "occur" or "be achieved" or the negative connotation thereof. Forward-looking statements in this news release include, among others, statements relating to: the exploration, development, and production at the Company's mineral projects.
Forward‐looking statements and forward‐looking information relating to any future mineral production, liquidity, enhanced value and capital markets profile of the Company, future growth potential for the Company and its business, and future exploration plans are based on management's reasonable assumptions, estimates, expectations, analyses and opinions, which are based on management's experience and perception of trends, current conditions and expected developments, and other factors that management believes are relevant and reasonable in the circumstances, but which may prove to be incorrect. Assumptions have been made regarding, among other things, the price of uranium and other commodities; no escalation in the severity of public health crises; costs of exploration and development; the estimated costs of development of exploration projects; the Company's ability to operate in a safe and effective manner and its ability to obtain financing on reasonable terms.
These statements reflect the Company's respective current views with respect to future events and are necessarily based upon a number of other assumptions and estimates that, while considered reasonable by management, are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties and contingencies. Many factors, both known and unknown, could cause actual results, performance, or achievements to be materially different from the results, performance or achievements that are or may be expressed or implied by such forward‐looking statements or forward-looking information and the Company has made assumptions and estimates based on or related to many of these factors. Such factors include, without limitation: the Company's dependence on one mineral project; precious metals price volatility; risks associated with the conduct of the Company's mining activities; regulatory, consent or permitting delays; risks relating to reliance on the Company's management team and outside contractors; the Company's inability to obtain insurance to cover all risks, on a commercially reasonable basis or at all; currency fluctuations; risks regarding the failure to generate sufficient cash flow from operations; risks relating to project financing and equity issuances; risks and unknowns inherent in all mining projects; contests over title to properties, particularly title to undeveloped properties; laws and regulations governing the environment, health and safety; the ability of the communities in which the Company operates to manage and cope with the implications of public health crises; the economic and financial implications of public health crises to the Company; operating or technical difficulties in connection with mining or development activities; employee relations, labour unrest or unavailability; the Company's interactions with surrounding communities; the Company's ability to successfully integrate acquired assets; the speculative nature of exploration and development; stock market volatility; conflicts of interest among certain directors and officers; lack of liquidity for shareholders of the Company; litigation risk; the ongoing military conflict around the world; general economic factors; and the factors identified under the caption "Risk Factors" in the Company's management discussion and analysis and other public disclosure documents.
Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking information or implied by forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that forward-looking information and statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated, estimated or intended. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements or information. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or reissue forward-looking information as a result of new information or events except as required by applicable securities laws.
To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/206631
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Cosa Resources Closes C$6.5 Million Private Placement
Cosa Resources Corp. (TSXV: COSA) (OTCQB: COSAF) (FSE: SSKU) ("Cosa" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has closed the brokered private placement previously announced by the Company on February 12, 2024, as upsized on February 13, 2024, for aggregate gross proceeds of C$6,500,816 (the "Offering"). The Offering was completed through a syndicate of underwriters, led by Haywood Securities Inc. and including PI Financial Corp. (collectively, the "Underwriters").
Pursuant to the Offering, the Company issued 2,128,000 units of the Company (the "Hard Dollar Units") at a price of C$0.47 per Hard Dollar Unit and 7,704,000 charity flow-through units of the Company (the "Charity FT Units", and together with the Hard Dollar Units, the "Units") at a price of C$0.714 per Charity FT Unit.
Each Hard Dollar Unit consists of one common share of the Company (a "Share") and one-half of one common share purchase warrant (each whole warrant, a "Warrant"). Each Charity FT Unit consists of one Share of the Company that qualifies as a "flow-through share" within the meaning of the Income Tax Act (Canada) and will qualify as an "eligible flow-through share" as defined in The Mineral Exploration Tax Credit Regulations, 2014 (Saskatchewan) and one-half of one Warrant.
Each Warrant entitles the holder to purchase one Share (a "Warrant Share") at an exercise price of C$0.67 until March 5, 2026, subject to an acceleration provision whereby, if for any ten consecutive trading days, the closing price of the Shares exceeds $1.20 per Share on the TSX Venture Exchange, the Company may announce by way of press release that the expiry date of the Warrants will be accelerated to 30 days thereafter.
The gross proceeds from the sale of the Charity FT Units will be used by the Company to incur eligible "Canadian exploration expenses" that qualify as "flow-through critical mineral mining expenditures" as such terms are defined in the Income Tax Act (Canada), and to incur "eligible flow-through mining expenditures" pursuant to The Mineral Exploration Tax Credit Regulations, 2014 (Saskatchewan) (collectively, the "Qualifying Expenditures") related to the Company's uranium projects in the Athabasca Basin, Saskatchewan, on or before December 31, 2025. All Qualifying Expenditures will be renounced in favour of the subscribers of the Charity FT Units effective December 31, 2024. The net proceeds from the sale of the Hard Dollar Units will be used to fund exploration and for additional working capital purposes.
In consideration for the services provided by the Underwriters in connection with the Offering, on closing the Company: (i) paid to the Underwriters a cash commission equal to 5.0% of the gross proceeds of the Offering, other than in respect of Units issued to certain purchasers on a president's list agreed upon by the Company and the Underwriters (the "President's List"), in which case the commission in respect of such issuance was equal to 3.0%; and (ii) issued compensation options of the Company (the "Compensation Options") to the Underwriters to acquire that number of common shares in the capital of the Company (each a "Compensation Option Share") which is equal to 6.0% of the number of Units sold under the Offering, other than in respect of Units issued to purchasers on the President's List, in which case the Company did not issue any Compensation Options. Each Compensation Option entitles the holder to acquire one Compensation Option Share until March 5, 2026, at an exercise price of C$0.47.
Taylor Collison Limited acted as a special financial advisor to the Company with respect to the Offering.
The Company welcomes CQS (UK) LLP, as investment manager for both CQS Natural Resources Growth and Income PLC and Geiger Counter Limited, as a new insider of the Company.
The securities issued and made issuable pursuant to the Offering are subject to a hold period expiring on July 6, 2024.
Directors and officers of the Company subscribed for an aggregate of 120,500 Hard Dollar Units for gross proceeds of $56,635 under the Offering. Participation by insiders of the Company in the Offering constitutes a related-party transaction as defined under Multilateral Instrument 61-101 - Protection of Minority Security Holders in Special Transactions ("MI 61-101"). The issuance of these securities is exempt from the formal valuation requirements of Section 5.4 of MI 61-101 pursuant to Subsection 5.5(b) of MI 61-101 as the common shares of the Company are listed on the TSX Venture Exchange. The issuance of these securities is also exempt from the minority approval requirements of Section 5.6 of MI 61-101 pursuant to Subsection 5.7(1)(b) of MI 61-101 as the fair market value was less than $2,500,000.
This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to sell any of securities in the United States. The securities have not been and will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act") or any state securities laws and may not be offered or sold within the United States or to U.S. Persons unless registered under the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws or an exemption from such registration is available.
About Cosa Resources
Cosa Resources is a Canadian uranium exploration company operating in northern Saskatchewan. The portfolio comprises roughly 200,000 ha across multiple projects in the Athabasca Basin region, all of which are underexplored, and the majority reside within or adjacent to established uranium corridors.
Cosa's award-winning management team has a long track record of success in Saskatchewan. In 2022, members of the Cosa team were awarded the AME Colin Spence Award for their previous involvement in discovering IsoEnergy's Hurricane deposit. Prior to Hurricane, Cosa personnel led teams or had integral roles in the discovery of Denison Mines' Gryphon deposit and 92 Energy's Gemini Zone and held key roles in the founding of both NexGen and IsoEnergy.
Cosa's primary focus through 2024 is initial drilling at their Ursa Project, which captures over 60-kilometres of strike length of the Cable Bay Shear Zone, a regional structural corridor with known mineralization and limited historical drilling. It potentially represents the last remaining eastern Athabasca corridor to not yet yield a major discovery. Modern geophysics completed by Cosa in 2023 identified multiple high-priority target areas characterized by conductive basement stratigraphy beneath or adjacent to broad zones of inferred sandstone alteration - a setting that is typical of most eastern Athabasca uranium deposits.
For further information on Cosa Resources, please contact:
Keith Bodnarchuk, President & CEO
Tel: +1 888-899-2672 (COSA)
Email: info@cosaresources.ca
Website: www.cosaresources.ca
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Forward-Looking Information
This press release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws. Any statements that express or involve discussions with respect to predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions or future events or performance (often, but not always, identified by words or phrases such as "believes", "anticipates", "expects", "is expected", "scheduled", "estimates", "pending", "intends", "plans", "forecasts", "targets", or "hopes", or variations of such words and phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "will", "should" "might", "will be taken", or "occur" and similar expressions) are not statements of historical fact and may be forward-looking statements. Forward-looking information herein includes, but is not limited to, statements that address activities, events or developments that Cosa expects or anticipates will or may occur in the future including the intended use of proceeds of the Offering and the tax treatment of the Charity FT Units.
Forward-looking statements and forward-looking information relating to any future mineral production, liquidity, enhanced value and capital markets profile of the Company, future growth potential for the Company and its business, and future exploration plans are based on management's reasonable assumptions, estimates, expectations, analyses and opinions, which are based on management's experience and perception of trends, current conditions and expected developments, and other factors that management believes are relevant and reasonable in the circumstances, but which may prove to be incorrect. Assumptions have been made regarding, among other things, the price of metals; costs of exploration and development; the estimated costs of development of exploration projects; the Company's ability to operate in a safe and effective manner.
These statements reflect the Company's respective current views with respect to future events and are necessarily based upon a number of other assumptions and estimates that, while considered reasonable by management, are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties and contingencies. Many factors, both known and unknown, could cause actual results, performance, or achievements to be materially different from the results, performance or achievements that are or may be expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements or forward-looking information and the Company has made assumptions and estimates based on or related to many of these factors. Such factors include, without limitation: the future tax treatment of the Charity FT Units, competitive risks and the availability of financing; precious metals price volatility; risks associated with the conduct of the Company's mining activities; regulatory, consent or permitting delays; risks relating to reliance on the Company's management team and outside contractors; the Company's inability to obtain insurance to cover all risks, on a commercially reasonable basis or at all; currency fluctuations; risks regarding the failure to generate sufficient cash flow from operations; risks relating to project financing and equity issuances; risks and unknowns inherent in all mining projects; contests over title to properties, particularly title to undeveloped properties; laws and regulations governing the environment, health and safety; the ability of the communities in which the Company operates to manage and cope with the implications of potential health epidemics, pandemics or other outbreaks of communicable diseases; operating or technical difficulties in connection with mining or development activities; employee relations, labour unrest or unavailability; the Company's interactions with surrounding communities; the speculative nature of exploration and development; stock market volatility; conflicts of interest among certain directors and officers; lack of liquidity for shareholders of the Company; litigation risk; and the factors identified in the Company's public disclosure documents. Readers are cautioned against attributing undue certainty to forward-looking statements or forward-looking information. Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially, there may be other factors that cause results not to be anticipated, estimated or intended. The Company does not intend, and does not assume any obligation, to update these forward-looking statements or forward-looking information to reflect changes in assumptions or changes in circumstances or any other events affecting such statements or information, other than as required by applicable law.
NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION TO U.S. NEWSWIRE SERVICES OR FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES
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Cosa Resources Announces Commencement of Diamond Drilling at the 100% Owned Ursa Uranium Project in the Athabasca Basin, Saskatchewan
Cosa Resources Corp. (TSXV: COSA) (OTCQB: COSAF) (FSE: SSKU) ("Cosa" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that following completion of ground-based geophysical surveying, the Company has commenced diamond drilling at its 100% owned Ursa uranium Project in the Athabasca Basin, Saskatchewan ("Ursa" or the "Property").
Highlights
Up to 3,000 metres of drilling planned to evaluate the highly prospective Kodiak target area
Interpretation of historical boulder geochemistry survey results identified large illite, uranium, and boron anomalies down-ice of the Kodiak target area
Mobilization of additional fuel and supplies to facilitate larger spring and summer drill program is underway
Keith Bodnarchuk, President and CEO, commented: "After months of assembling an industry-leading exploration team and a portfolio of prospective and underexplored uranium projects, we are thrilled to announce Cosa's inaugural drill program at our 100% owned Ursa Project is underway. We want to thank our stakeholders, shareholders, and supporters for their enthusiasm as we work towards our goal of discovering the Athabasca Basin's next major uranium deposit. With the close of our $6.5 million financing expected soon, we are ready to begin testing targets at Ursa while advancing multiple other key projects towards drill readiness. The additional funding will also allow us to expand summer drilling at Ursa where warranted. We look forward to updating the market on exploration results."
Andy Carmichael, VP of Exploration, commented: "We would like to thank Accurate Industries, Bryson Drilling, Matrix Camps, and Athabasca Catering for their valued contributions to getting this drill campaign underway under difficult winter conditions. The recently completed ground geophysical survey confirmed quality basement conductors are present in target areas identified from the Property-wide 2023 MobileMT survey. Compilation of historical data has identified geochemical anomalies in boulders down-ice of several of Cosa's geophysically-driven target areas. We are excited to be drilling this large and prospective Project."
Diamond Drilling at Ursa
Up to 3,000 metres of diamond drilling is planned at Ursa this winter. The objective of drilling is to complete first pass testing in one or two of the eleven target areas identified from Cosa's 2023 MobileMT survey (see Cosa's news release dated November 1st, 2023). Six initial target areas were followed-up with ground-based Stepwise Moving Loop Transient Electromagnetic (SWML-TEM) surveying in late 2023 and early 2024 to refine basement conductor locations for drill targeting (Figure 1).
Cosa's drilling strategy is to test for the presence of structure and hydrothermal alteration typical of the Athabasca Basin's high-grade unconformity-related uranium deposits. As the sandstone expressions of these features are extensive vertically and along strike but narrow across strike, drilling will be completed at relatively shallow inclinations (-70 to -75 degrees) to maximize the width evaluated across strike. Drilling will be proximal to EM conductors that may reflect structurally reactivated graphitic basement rocks typically associated with Athabasca uranium deposits. Intersections of favourable alteration and/or structure would warrant follow-up and upgrade the tested target area and its along-strike extensions.
Kodiak
Drilling will begin in the Kodiak area where SWML-TEM surveying mapped a clear, basement-hosted EM conductor adjacent to a zone of anomalous sandstone conductivity identified by the 2023 airborne MobileMT™ survey. In addition to this favourable geophysical signature, a 12-kilometre-long by up to 4-kilometre-wide boulder illite anomaly upgrades the prospectivity of the target area, suggesting the presence of a large-scale hydrothermal alteration zone extending to the top of bedrock (Figure 2). Illitic alteration is commonly associated with Athabasca unconformity-related uranium deposits such as Hurricane and Cigar Lake, forming a halo in the sandstone much broader than the mineralization. Overlapping the illite anomaly are coincident, 7-kilometre long by up to 2-kilometre-wide uranium and boron anomalies. Ice flow direction indicators suggest the bedrock source lies to the northeast; as overburden in the area is relatively thin, the source of the anomalous boulders is interpreted to lie within the Project.
Other Target Areas
Geophysical processing and modelling of the ground EM survey results is ongoing for the Grizzly, Bruin, Smokey, and Panda West target areas. Depending on initial results and weather conditions, Cosa may begin drill testing an additional target area in the current program.
Next Steps
Drilling results, including geochemical assays and clay spectroscopy of core, will guide a larger drill program planned for spring and summer 2024. The Company is considering and coordinating further geophysical work to be conducted in spring and early summer of 2024. In conjunction with the pending interpretations of ground SWML-TEM survey results, this work will aid summer drill targeting.
Concurrent with ongoing drilling operations, Cosa is utilizing the winter access trail to mobilize equipment, fuel, and supplies required to complete summer drilling and geophysical surveys. This investment in planned summer work will streamline summer operations costs by significantly reducing the need for aircraft support.
Figure 1 - Ursa Target Areas Defined by 2023 MMT Survey over Basement Conductivity Model (100 metres Below the Unconformity)
To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:
https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/9865/200265_772f720d14f3d9ca_003full.jpg
Figure 2 - Kodiak Target Area with Historical Boulder Sampling Results over Basement Conductivity Model (100 metres Below the Unconformity)
To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:
https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/9865/200265_772f720d14f3d9ca_004full.jpg
About Cosa Resources Corp.
Cosa Resources is a Canadian uranium exploration company operating in northern Saskatchewan. The portfolio comprises roughly 209,000 ha across multiple projects in the Athabasca Basin region, all of which are underexplored, and the majority reside within or adjacent to established uranium corridors.
Cosa's award-winning management team has a long track record of success in Saskatchewan. In 2022, members of the Cosa team were awarded the AME Colin Spence Award for their previous involvement in discovering IsoEnergy's Hurricane deposit. Prior to Hurricane, Cosa personnel led teams or had integral roles in the discovery of Denison Mines' Gryphon deposit and 92 Energy's Gemini Zone and held key roles in the founding of both NexGen and IsoEnergy.
Cosa's primary focus through 2024 is initial drilling at our Ursa Project, which captures over 60-kilometres of strike length of the Cable Bay Shear Zone, a regional structural corridor with known mineralization and limited historical drilling. It potentially represents the last remaining eastern Athabasca corridor to not yet yield a major discovery. Modern geophysics completed by Cosa in 2023 identified multiple high-priority target areas characterized by conductive basement stratigraphy beneath or adjacent to broad zones of inferred sandstone alteration - a setting that is typical of most eastern Athabasca uranium deposits.
Qualified Person
The Company's disclosure of technical or scientific information in this press release has been reviewed and approved by Andy Carmichael, P.Geo., Vice President, Exploration for Cosa. Mr. Carmichael is a Qualified Person as defined under the terms of National Instrument 43-101. This news release refers to neighboring properties in which the Company has no interest. Mineralization on those neighboring properties does not necessarily indicate mineralization on the Company's properties.
Contact
Keith Bodnarchuk, President and CEO
info@cosaresources.ca
+1 888-899-2672 (COSA)
Cautionary Statements
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
The information contained herein contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. "Forward-looking information" includes, but is not limited to, statements with respect to the activities, events or developments that the Company expects or anticipates will or may occur in the future, including, without limitation, planned exploration activities. Generally, but not always, forward-looking information and statements can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates", or "believes" or the negative connotation thereof or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "occur" or "be achieved" or the negative connotation thereof. Forward-looking statements in this news release include, among others, statements relating to: the exploration, development, and production at the Company's mineral projects.
Forward‐looking statements and forward‐looking information relating to any future mineral production, liquidity, enhanced value and capital markets profile of the Company, future growth potential for the Company and its business, and future exploration plans are based on management's reasonable assumptions, estimates, expectations, analyses and opinions, which are based on management's experience and perception of trends, current conditions and expected developments, and other factors that management believes are relevant and reasonable in the circumstances, but which may prove to be incorrect. Assumptions have been made regarding, among other things, the price of uranium and other commodities; no escalation in the severity of public health crises; costs of exploration and development; the estimated costs of development of exploration projects; the Company's ability to operate in a safe and effective manner and its ability to obtain financing on reasonable terms.
These statements reflect the Company's respective current views with respect to future events and are necessarily based upon a number of other assumptions and estimates that, while considered reasonable by management, are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties and contingencies. Many factors, both known and unknown, could cause actual results, performance, or achievements to be materially different from the results, performance or achievements that are or may be expressed or implied by such forward‐looking statements or forward-looking information and the Company has made assumptions and estimates based on or related to many of these factors. Such factors include, without limitation: the Company's dependence on one mineral project; precious metals price volatility; risks associated with the conduct of the Company's mining activities; regulatory, consent or permitting delays; risks relating to reliance on the Company's management team and outside contractors; the Company's inability to obtain insurance to cover all risks, on a commercially reasonable basis or at all; currency fluctuations; risks regarding the failure to generate sufficient cash flow from operations; risks relating to project financing and equity issuances; risks and unknowns inherent in all mining projects; contests over title to properties, particularly title to undeveloped properties; laws and regulations governing the environment, health and safety; the ability of the communities in which the Company operates to manage and cope with the implications of public health crises; the economic and financial implications of public health crises to the Company; operating or technical difficulties in connection with mining or development activities; employee relations, labour unrest or unavailability; the Company's interactions with surrounding communities; the Company's ability to successfully integrate acquired assets; the speculative nature of exploration and development; stock market volatility; conflicts of interest among certain directors and officers; lack of liquidity for shareholders of the Company; litigation risk; the ongoing military conflict around the world; general economic factors; and the factors identified under the caption "Risk Factors" in the Company's management discussion and analysis and other public disclosure documents.
Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking information or implied by forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that forward-looking information and statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated, estimated or intended. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements or information. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or reissue forward-looking information as a result of new information or events except as required by applicable securities laws.
To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/200265
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Cosa Resources Acquires the Cosmo Uranium Property, Athabasca Basin, Saskatchewan
Cosa Resources Corp. (TSXV: COSA) (OTCQB: COSAF) (FSE: SSKU) ("Cosa" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the acquisition of the 100% owned Cosmo uranium property in the eastern Athabasca Basin, Saskatchewan ("Cosmo" or the "Property").
Highlights
12 contiguous mineral dispositions totalling over 9,300 hectares with no encumbrances acquired via low-cost staking
Cosmo captures 18 kilometres of prospective magnetic low strike-length with no prior drilling
Mobilization for Cosa's initial diamond drilling program at the Ursa Project is nearing completion
Keith Bodnarchuk, President and CEO, commented: "With the successful acquisition of Cosmo, we continue to strengthen our portfolio of prospective and under-explored uranium projects in the Athabasca Basin. As the clean energy revolution builds momentum, projects with sufficient size and the right geological framework are becoming more difficult to acquire. We look forward to advancing Cosmo to drill testing given the proximity to known mineralization on trend and the project's location close to existing infrastructure."
Andy Carmichael, VP of Exploration, commented: "Historically, the Mudjatik domain was considered less prospective than other parts of the eastern Athabasca Basin and so received far less exploration attention. The discovery of the Hurricane deposit in 2018 proved the Mudjatik is highly prospective and revitalized exploration of this previously undervalued domain. Cosmo's 18 kilometres of Mudjatik magnetic low has never seen a modern ground geophysical survey or a single drill hole and represents an excellent exploration prospect proximal to the mining and milling infrastructure of the eastern Athabasca."
The Cosmo Property
Cosmo comprises 12 claims totaling 9,308 hectares in the eastern Athabasca Basin and is located 36 kilometres west of the Hurricane Deposit and 58 kilometres north of the Cigar Lake Mine (Figure 1). Provincial Highway 905 passes within seven kilometres of the Property and a network of trails and a provincial powerline pass through the Property (Figure 2).
Cosmo covers 18 kilometres of curvilinear magnetic low strike length interpreted to represent favourable metasediments. Historical exploration was limited to a 1979 lake sediment sampling program and a 2007 airborne geophysical survey. While no drilling is known within the Property, historical drilling located 13 to 25 kilometres along strike to the east intersected several intervals of weak uranium mineralization, including 0.20% U3O8 over 1.2 metres in drill hole BL-14-20 (549.9 - 551.1 m).
Next Steps
Cosa anticipates initial work will include electromagnetic (EM) surveying to define target areas within the Property. Given the ease of access and proximity to known mineralization along strike, positive results would warrant aggressive follow up work including ground EM and diamond drilling.
Other News
Despite unseasonably warm conditions, mobilization of drilling equipment, supplies, and personnel to Cosa's Ursa Project is ongoing and is nearing completion. Diamond drilling is expected to commence immediately thereafter. Additionally, Keith Bodnarchuk, CEO, and Justin Rodko, Corporate Development Manager, will be attending PDAC in Toronto, Ontario from March 3rd to 6th 2024 and will be available for meetings.
Figure 1 — Cosa's Portfolio of Athabasca Basin Region Uranium Exploration Properties
To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:
https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/9865/198662_9315bce244fec916_003full.jpg
Figure 2 — Cosmo Property Map
To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:
https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/9865/198662_9315bce244fec916_004full.jpg
About Cosa Resources Corp.
Cosa Resources is a Canadian uranium exploration company operating in northern Saskatchewan. The portfolio comprises roughly 209,000 ha across multiple projects in the Athabasca Basin region, all of which are underexplored, and the majority reside within or adjacent to established uranium corridors.
Cosa's award-winning management team has a long track record of success in Saskatchewan. In 2022, members of the Cosa team were awarded the AME Colin Spence Award for their previous involvement in discovering IsoEnergy's Hurricane deposit. Prior to Hurricane, Cosa personnel led teams or had integral roles in the discovery of Denison Mines' Gryphon deposit and 92 Energy's Gemini Zone and held key roles in the founding of both NexGen and IsoEnergy.
Cosa's primary focus through 2024 is initial drilling at their Ursa Project, which captures over 60-kilometres of strike length of the Cable Bay Shear Zone, a regional structural corridor with known mineralization and limited historical drilling. It potentially represents the last remaining eastern Athabasca corridor to not yet yield a major discovery. Modern geophysics completed by Cosa in 2023 identified multiple high-priority target areas characterized by conductive basement stratigraphy beneath or adjacent to broad zones of inferred sandstone alteration - a setting that is typical of most eastern Athabasca uranium deposits.
Qualified Person
The Company's disclosure of technical or scientific information in this press release has been reviewed and approved by Andy Carmichael, P.Geo., Vice President, Exploration for Cosa. Mr. Carmichael is a Qualified Person as defined under the terms of National Instrument 43-101. This news release refers to neighboring properties in which the Company has no interest. Mineralization on those neighboring properties does not necessarily indicate mineralization on the Company's properties.
Contact
Keith Bodnarchuk, President and CEO
info@cosaresources.ca
+1 888-899-2672 (COSA)
Cautionary Statements
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
The information contained herein contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. "Forward-looking information" includes, but is not limited to, statements with respect to the activities, events or developments that the Company expects or anticipates will or may occur in the future, including, without limitation, planned exploration activities. Generally, but not always, forward-looking information and statements can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates", or "believes" or the negative connotation thereof or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "occur" or "be achieved" or the negative connotation thereof. Forward-looking statements in this news release include, among others, statements relating to: the exploration, development, and production at the Company's mineral projects.
Forward‐looking statements and forward‐looking information relating to any future mineral production, liquidity, enhanced value and capital markets profile of the Company, future growth potential for the Company and its business, and future exploration plans are based on management's reasonable assumptions, estimates, expectations, analyses and opinions, which are based on management's experience and perception of trends, current conditions and expected developments, and other factors that management believes are relevant and reasonable in the circumstances, but which may prove to be incorrect. Assumptions have been made regarding, among other things, the price of uranium and other commodities; no escalation in the severity of public health crises; costs of exploration and development; the estimated costs of development of exploration projects; the Company's ability to operate in a safe and effective manner and its ability to obtain financing on reasonable terms.
These statements reflect the Company's respective current views with respect to future events and are necessarily based upon a number of other assumptions and estimates that, while considered reasonable by management, are inherently subject to significant business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties and contingencies. Many factors, both known and unknown, could cause actual results, performance, or achievements to be materially different from the results, performance or achievements that are or may be expressed or implied by such forward‐looking statements or forward-looking information and the Company has made assumptions and estimates based on or related to many of these factors. Such factors include, without limitation: the Company's dependence on one mineral project; precious metals price volatility; risks associated with the conduct of the Company's mining activities; regulatory, consent or permitting delays; risks relating to reliance on the Company's management team and outside contractors; the Company's inability to obtain insurance to cover all risks, on a commercially reasonable basis or at all; currency fluctuations; risks regarding the failure to generate sufficient cash flow from operations; risks relating to project financing and equity issuances; risks and unknowns inherent in all mining projects; contests over title to properties, particularly title to undeveloped properties; laws and regulations governing the environment, health and safety; the ability of the communities in which the Company operates to manage and cope with the implications of public health crises; the economic and financial implications of public health crises to the Company; operating or technical difficulties in connection with mining or development activities; employee relations, labour unrest or unavailability; the Company's interactions with surrounding communities; the Company's ability to successfully integrate acquired assets; the speculative nature of exploration and development; stock market volatility; conflicts of interest among certain directors and officers; lack of liquidity for shareholders of the Company; litigation risk; the ongoing military conflict around the world; general economic factors; and the factors identified under the caption "Risk Factors" in the Company's management discussion and analysis and other public disclosure documents.
Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking information or implied by forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that forward-looking information and statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated, estimated or intended. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements or information. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or reissue forward-looking information as a result of new information or events except as required by applicable securities laws.
To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/198662
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Toro Energy
Investor Insight
Toro Energy’s significant uranium resource in a tier 1 jurisdiction places the company in a compelling position to leverage a bullish uranium market and the mineral’s strategic role in global decarbonization.
Overview
Australia is the world’s third-largest uranium producer (12 percent) next to Kazakhstan (43 percent) and Canada (13 percent). It is home to the Wiluna Uranium Project, the flagship asset of Toro Energy (ASX:TOE), a uranium exploration and development company also exploring value in other commodities.
The 100-percent-owned Wiluna uranium project includes three key deposits – Lake Maitland, Centipede-Millipede and Lake Way – and offers significant uranium exposure of 87.8 million tons (Mt) at 381 ppm for 73.6 Mlbs U3O8 at 100 ppm cut-off (JORC 2012). It is located only 30 kilometers southeast of Wiluna in Central Western Australia.
The Wiluna uranium project has received state and federal approval (subject to required amendments) and has been granted mining leases.
Considerable research over recent years has identified processing redesign opportunities from unique geological attributes within the uranium deposits, but particularly at Lake Maitland, as well as the ability to extract the inherent vanadium held within the uranium ‘ore’ for a vanadium by-product.
Within the uranium mineralization envelope, the Wiluna project is estimated to contain 141.8 Mt vanadium oxide (V2O5) at 286 ppm for 89.3 Mlbs of V2O5 at 100 ppm V2O5 cut-off (JORC 2012), as of September 24, 2024.
The scoping study for the stand-alone Lake Maitland uranium-vanadium operation option shows potential for exceptional financial returns with a pre-tax NPV of AU$832.8 million, a short payback period of 2.5 years, 48 percent internal rate of return, and low capex of AU$291 million (US$203 million), based on price assumption of US$85/lb U3O8, US$5.67/lb V2O5 and a 70 cents US$:AU$ exchange rate.
In September 2024, the Lake Maitland deposit has been re-estimated using a resource envelope more in line with the other Wiluna uranium deposits; allowed the lowering of the cut-off grade to 100ppm U3O8, expanding Lake Maitland resources by 12 percent and that of the entire Wiluna project by 17 percent (when the expansions at Lake Way and Centipede-Millipede are also included).
The design phase of Toro Energy’s beneficiation and hydrometallurgical pilot plant is on track and in line with plans to finalise construction. The pilot plant will test the improved beneficiation and hydrometallurgical circuit developed by Toro from bench scale research at a closer-to-production scale and as single streams. It will also test potential ore from the three uranium-vanadium deposits that Toro believes will make up an extended Lake Maitland operation – these include Lake Maitland, Lake Way and Centipede-Millipede.
The Lake Maitland deposit is part of a joint venture partnership with two reputable Japanese corporations, Japan Australia Uranium Resource Development. (JAURD) and Itochu.
Toro has been actively evaluating the prospectivity of its Wiluna asset portfolio for minerals other than uranium, including nickel and gold.
The Lake Maitland mining pit re-optimization which incorporated the latest resource estimates and updated financial data has been completed. Mine scheduling is currently underway in preparation for the upcoming scoping study update.
Toro’s Dusty nickel project is located on the northern, eastern and southern shores of Lake Maitland and the Lake Maitland uranium deposit and is focused on two main target areas: Dusty and Yandal One. These properties will be the subject of a proposed demerger, following Toro’s recent strategic review of its non-core assets and future plans to solely focus on its uranium development opportunities and its flagship Wiluna project.
Toro Energy’s management team and board of directors have extensive experience in the mining industry, with combined expertise that includes working at major mining houses, exploration companies, uranium mining operations, corporate financing and government and community relations.
Company Highlights
- Toro Energy is a well-established uranium exploration and development company based in Western Australia, with a strong focus on unlocking value from additional commodities within its highly prospective landholdings.
- The company holds JORC-compliant uranium resources totaling 112.7 million pounds (Mlbs) of uranium oxide (U₃O₈) across its Western Australian projects.
- Toro’s 100%-owned flagship Wiluna Uranium Project, located 30 km southeast of Wiluna in Central Western Australia, hosts a total resource of 87.8 million tonnes (Mt) at 331 ppm for 73.6 Mlbs U₃O₈ at a 100 ppm cut-off. The project encompasses three key deposits: Lake Maitland, Centipede-Millipede, and Lake Way.
- Within the uranium mineralization envelope, Toro has also defined a maiden vanadium resource of 89.3 Mlbs V₂O₅ at a 100 ppm cut-off. A scoping study for a stand-alone Lake Maitland uranium-vanadium operation indicates the potential for exceptional financial returns.
- Beyond uranium, strategic exploration within the Lake Maitland tenure has led to the discovery of massive nickel sulphide and vein-hosted gold deposits, including the Dusty Nickel Project and the Yandal Gold Project.
- Following a recent strategic review, Toro is evaluating a renewed focus on uranium development and is considering the demerger of non-core assets, including its nickel, gold, and base metal projects in Western Australia.
- Toro is led by a highly experienced management team and board of directors, with deep expertise in uranium exploration, mining, and base metal exploration.
Key Projects
Wiluna Uranium Project
Location of the Lake Maitland Uranium and Vanadium Deposit within Toro’s portfolio of Uranium-Vanadium Deposits that make up the company’s Wiluna Uranium-Vanadium Project
Toro Energy’s flagship asset is located only 30 kilometers from the town of Wiluna in the northern goldfields region within central Western Australia. The Wiluna project contains 87.8 Mt at 381 ppm for 73.6 Mlbs U 3O8 at 100 ppm cut-off over three deposits: Centipede-Millipede, Lake Way and Lake Maitland. The asset has been de-risked and optimized to improve yield and has successfully incorporated the processing of a vanadium resource as a by-product. A scoping study was completed for a stand-alone Lake Maitland uranium-vanadium operation.
Project Highlights:
- De-risked Uranium Project: Toro Energy has de-risked the Wiluna uranium asset by securing state and federal approvals, mining leases, and a simplified mining process. Further approvals are needed due to project enhancements. Extensive lab testing has also validated an efficient beneficiation and processing technique, enabling vanadium extraction as a valuable by-product.
- Uranium Exploration assets: Toro also owns 100 percent of three other exploration projects in Western Australia that have a total uranium resource of 39.1 Mlbs Nowthanna (200ppm U3O8 cut-off), Dawson Hinkler (100ppm U3O8 cut-off) and Theseus (200ppm U3O8 cut-off).
- Lake Maitland Pit Expansion: A 2022 pit expansion for a stand-alone Lake Maitland mining and processing operation, based on an updated uranium price, the inclusion of vanadium as a by-product, revised OPEX based on a the new beneficiation and processing flow sheet, increased the potential volume of uranium ore
- Initial Scoping study at proposed Lake Maitland Uranium-Vanadium Operation: Initial scoping study results following the 2022 pit expansion highlight the project’s potential for robust financial returns, increasing the asset to US$608 million in potential gross product value (assumes a US$70/lb U3O8, US$5.67/lb V2O5 price and a US$: AU$0.70 exchange rate).
- 2024 Scoping Study Financial Metrics Update: A refresh of the scoping study on the stand-alone Lake Maitland operation which incorporates current financial metrics and improved uranium pricing has been recently completed resulting an increase in pre-tax NPV to $832.8 million and 48 percent IRR (assumes a US$85/lb U3O8, US$5.67/lb V2O5 price and a US$: AU$0.70 exchange rate).
- Expanded Resource: Reducing the U₃O₈ and V₂O₅ cut-off grade to 100 ppm has significantly expanded resources across all three uranium-vanadium deposits:
- Lake Maitland:
- U₃O₈: +12 percent (3.2 Mlbs) to 29.6 Mlbs, average grade 403 ppm
- V₂O₅: +74 percent (13.4 Mlbs) to 31.4 Mlbs, average grade 285 ppm
- Centipede-Millipede:
- U₃O₈: +25 percent (5.98 Mlbs) to 29.95 Mlbs, average grade 351 ppm
- V₂O₅: +17% (6.6 Mlbs) to 45.2 Mlbs, average grade 281 ppm
- Lake Way:
- U₃O₈: +15 percent (1.79 Mlbs) to 14.12 Mlbs, average grade 406 ppm
- V₂O₅: +9.5 percent (1.1 Mlbs) to 12.7 Mlbs, average grade 307 ppm
- Lake Maitland:
- Pilot Plant Design Commissioned: A detailed pilot plant design is being undertaken to further assess the new processing flowsheet for Lake Maitland at a closer to ‘operational’ scale. The pilot plant design is on track incorporating all aspects of both uranium and vanadium production. A sonic core drilling program will commence to deliver potential ore to the pilot plant currently in design for Wiluna.
- Robust Local Infrastructure: The assets are within an established mining center, which means much of the required infrastructure is readily available. The project has access to power and water, which reduces initial development costs.
- Joint Venture Partnership: Toro Energy has entered into a joint venture partnership with JAURD and Itochu for its Lake Maitland deposit. Both corporations have the right, but not the obligation, to earn a combined 35 percent interest in the project upon contributing US$39.6 million, and an additional proportionate share of expenditure thereafter, once a positive final investment decision has been made based on a definitive feasibility study.
The Dusty Nickel Project – Discoveries of Massive Nickel Sulphide
Toro’s Lake Maitland tenure is located in the Yandal Greenstone Belt within the Yilgarn Craton of Western Australia, a gold district within a world-class gold and nickel province. With little exploration for non-uranium minerals ever conducted on the properties, Toro considers the project area highly prospective for nickel, gold and base metals.
Exploration and diamond drilling have identified four massive/semi-massive nickel sulphide zones within just 4.5 km of a 7.5 km komatiite magnetic trend. Limited testing has been conducted across a 15 km strike of known komatiite-ultramafic target rock. With minimal drilling at Lake Maitland, the full extent of prospective nickel sulphide mineralization remains unknown.
Project Highlights:
- Four zones of massive nickel sulphide discovered: Toro has discovered four zones of massive and semi-massive nickel sulphides: Dusty, Houli Dooley, Jumping Jack and Dimma.
- Yandal OneTarget Area: The Yandal One Target Area is located some 17 kilometers south of the Dusty discoveries and with limited drilling, Toro has proven the existence of another komatiite with the potential to host massive nickel sulphide.
Toro Yandal Gold Project
The Lake Maitland tenure is located only 20 kilometers northeast of the world-class Bronzewing and Mt McClure gold mines within the same Greenstone Belt, the Yandal, within one of the most famous gold provinces in the world, the Yilgarn Craton.
Early exploration by Toro at the Golden Ways target area in the north of the project has uncovered surface rock chip samples of up to 70 g/t gold and significant drilling results, including:
- 5 meters at 4.4 g/t from 22 meters (TERC24)
- Including 2 meters at 9.93 g/t from 22 meters
- 4 meters at 3.3 g/t from 28 meters (TERC25)
- Including 1 meter at 10.9 g/t from 28 meters
- 2 meters at 3.79 g/t from 10 meters (TERC38)
- Including 1 meters at 7.33 g/t from 10 meters
- 3 meters at 1.41 g/t from 9 meters (TERC36)
- Including 1 meters at 2.76 g/t from 10 meters
Management Team
Richard Homsany - Executive Chairman
Richard Homsany has extensive experience in the resources industry, having been the executive vice-president for Australia of TSX-listed Mega Uranium since April 2010. He has worked for North Ltd, an ASX top 50-listed internationally diversified resources company in operations, risk management and corporate, before its takeover by Rio Tinto.
Homsany is an experienced corporate lawyer and certified practicing accountant (CPA) advising numerous clients in the energy and resources sector, including publicly listed companies. He was corporate partner at international law firm DLA Phillips Fox (now DLA Piper), where he advised clients on a range of transactions and matters including capital raising, IPOs, stock exchange listing, mergers and acquisitions, finance, joint ventures, divestments and governance.
Michel Marier - Non-executive Director
Michel Marier joined Sentient in 2009 as an investment manager. Before joining Sentient, Marier worked eight years in the private equity division of la Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec. Marier holds a master’s degree in finance from HEC Montreal and is a CFA charter holder.
Richard Patricio - Non-executive Director
Richard Patricio is the CEO and president of Mega Uranium, a uranium-focused investment and development company with assets in Canada and Australia. Patricio has built a number of mining companies with global operations. He holds senior officer and director positions in several junior mining companies listed on the TSX, TSX Venture, AIM and NASDAQ exchanges. He is currently also a director of NexGen Energy (TSE:NXE, Mkt Cap. C$2.7 billion). He previously practiced law at a top-tier law firm in Toronto and worked as an in-house general counsel for a senior TSX-listed company. He received his law degree from Osgoode Hall and was called to the Ontario bar in 2000.
Dr. Greg Shirtliff – Geology Manager
Dr. Greg Shirtliff, with a PhD in mine-related geology and geochemistry from ANU, has 20+ years of experience across environmental, mine geology, resource development, exploration, and management. His career includes roles at ERA-Rio Tinto’s Ranger Uranium Mine, Cameco Australasia, and currently as Lead Geologist & Technical Manager at Toro Energy. He oversees uranium and mineral resource development, directs exploration strategy, supports EPA approvals, and guides engineering and metallurgical assessments.
Katherine Garvey - Legal Counsel and Company Secretary
Katherine Garvey is a corporate lawyer who has significant experience in the resources sector. Garvey advises public (both listed and unlisted) and proprietary companies on a variety of corporate and commercial matters including capital raising, finance, acquisitions and disposals, Corporations Act and ASX Listing Rule compliance, corporate governance and company secretarial issues. She has extensive experience drafting and negotiating various corporate and commercial agreements including farm-in agreements, joint ventures, shareholders’ agreements, and business and share sale and purchase agreements.
Marc Boudames - Financial Controller
Marc Boudames is experienced in statutory financial reporting, taxation, ERP systems, business analytics, corporate transactions, due diligence, mergers & acquisitions, finance, joint ventures and divestments. He previously worked at RSM Bird Cameron, as general manager –finance & administration for ASX-listed Redport Ltd and Mega Uranium (Australia), a Canadian TSX-listed mining and equity investment company focused on global uranium properties and multi-mineral exploration. He has worked for multiple companies across various industries, including listed and public companies associated with the mining and oil and gas sectors, such as WesTrac, CB&I and Spotless Group.
Western Uranium & Vanadium Corp. Announces Ore Purchase Agreement
Western Uranium & Vanadium Corp. (CSE: WUC) (OTCQX: WSTRF) (" Western " or the " Company ") is pleased to announce that the Company has entered into an Ore Purchase Agreement ("Agreement") with Energy Fuels Inc. (NYSE American: UUUU) (TSX:EFR).
Western plans to commence hauling around the beginning of May, making deliveries to Energy Fuels' White Mesa Mill, the only operational conventional uranium/vanadium mill in the United States. Deliveries will be sourced from previously mined production that has been stockpiled at the Company's flagship Sunday Mine Complex. The Agreement is for a one year period, and provisions for the delivery of up to 25,000 short tons of uranium bearing ore. The purchase price will be calculated based upon the uranium grade of each closed lot according to the agreed pricing schedule.
George Glasier, Western's CEO stated: "This Agreement strengthens Western's strategic position and accelerates our generation of revenues, while rewarding shareholder investments that have yielded our current stockpiles. The collaboration with Energy Fuels provides synergies and leverage for both companies, while the North American nuclear fuel supply chain benefits from expedited near-term production of uranium resources."
Warrant Repricing
Further to the news release issued by the Company on November 29, 2024, Western announces that a total of 2,868,541 previously issued common share purchase warrants (the "Warrants") have been repriced and are now exercisable at CAD$2.00 per share. The Company received consents from all holders of Warrants and filed an amended Form 13 dated February 27, 2025 under its profile on the Canadian Securities Exchange ("CSE") website. As previously announced, the term of the Warrants was extended with all Warrants now expiring on January 20, 2026. All other terms of the Warrants remain unchanged. In accordance with the CSE rules, no compensation warrant was repriced or extended. Western will not issue replacement Warrant certificates. The originally issued Warrant certificates will be utilized for any such exercises. Please refer to Western's news release issued on November 29, 2024 for additional details.
About Western Uranium & Vanadium Corp.
Western Uranium & Vanadium Corp. is ramping-up high-grade uranium and vanadium production at its Sunday Mine Complex. In addition to the flagship property located in the prolific Uravan Mineral Belt, the production pipeline also includes conventional projects in Colorado and Utah. The Mustang Mineral Processing Site is being licensed and developed for mined material recovery and will incorporate kinetic separation to optimize economics.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information: Certain information contained in this news release constitutes "forward-looking information" or "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities laws (collectively, "forward-looking statements"). Statements of that nature include statements relating to, or that are dependent upon: the Company's expectations, estimates and projections regarding the Offering and exploration and production plans and results; the timing of planned activities; whether the Company can raise any additional funds required to implement its plans; whether regulatory or analogous requirements can be satisfied to permit planned activities; and more generally to the Company's business, and the economic and political environment applicable to its operations, assets and plans. All such forward-looking statements are subject to important risk factors and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the Company's ability to control or predict. Please refer to the Company's most recent Management's Discussion and Analysis, as well as its other filings at www.sec.gov and/or www.sedarplus.com , for a more detailed review of those risk factors. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on the Company's forward-looking statements, and that these statements are made as of the date hereof. While the Company may do so, it does not undertake any obligation to update these forward-looking statements at any particular time, except as and to the extent required under applicable laws and regulations.
FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT :
Grant Glasier
Vice President Marketing and Project Development
303-808-3306
grantg@western-uranium.com
George Glasier
President and CEO
970-864-2125
gglasier@western-uranium.com
News Provided by GlobeNewswire via QuoteMedia
AuKing Mining
Investor Insight
The Cloncurry Gold project is a portfolio of an existing permitted processing plant, mining and exploration licences that are being acquired by Orion Resources. AuKing has the right to acquire a 50 percent interest in these near-term gold production interests by incurring AU$5 million in expenditure before 30 June 2027.
Overview
AuKing Mining (ASX:AKN) is an exploration and development company with a portfolio of assets focused primarily on gold, but also uranium, copper, and critical minerals, across Australia, Tanzania, and Canada. The company aims to become a mid-tier producer through the acquisition and development of near-term production assets.
In February 2025, AuKing Mining entered into a strategic agreement with Gage Resources, an Australian subsidiary of Beijing-based Gage Capital Management. The agreement includes a $300,000 investment by Gage, resulting in a 10 percent stake in AuKing, and the sale of two non-core prospecting licenses in Tanzania to Gage for an additional $300,000. This partnership is expected to enhance AuKing's financial position and support its ongoing exploration and development activities.
Company Highlights
- AuKing Mining is an exploration and development company with its primary focus being the Cloncurry Gold Project in north Queensland.
- The company also holds a diverse portfolio of exploration assets in Western Australia (Koongie Park), Tanzania (Mkuju), Canada (Myoff Creek in British Columbia and Grand Codroy in Newfoundland).
- Strategic Acquisitions and Partnerships:
- Entered an earn-in agreement to acquire a 50 percent interest in the Cloncurry Gold project.
- Entered a joint venture in February 2025 with ASX-listed Cobalt Blue Holdings (CBH) whereby CBH can earn up to a 75 percent interest in the Koongie Park project in Western Australia.
- Formed a strategic partnership with large Beijing-based resources fund, Gage Capital in February 2025.
- AuKing is led by a highly experienced management team executing the company’s strategies to increase shareholder value.
Key Projects
Cloncurry Gold Project (Queensland, Australia)
In November 2024, AuKing Mining entered into an earn-in agreement with Orion Resources for the Cloncurry gold project in northern Queensland. This agreement allows AuKing to increase its stake in the project to 50 percent by investing AU$5 million in project funding by June 2027.
Orion’s Cloncurry Project interests, including the Mt Freda/Golden Mill mining leases. [Note the nearby Wynberg and Wallace/Wallace South gold projects are not assets being acquired by Orion]
A key component of this project is the Tick Hill Gold Joint Venture, involving AuKing, Orion Resources, and Tick Hill Mining, the current owner of the Tick Hill gold mine. The JV aims to establish a processing operation at Tick Hill, focusing initially on reprocessing the existing tailings stockpiles. A pre-feasibility study completed in 2020 outlined a processing capacity of 474,200 tonnes at 2 g/t gold over 13 months, yielding approximately 27,300 ounces of gold at an all-in sustaining cost (AISC) of AU$1,493 per ounce.
In March 2025, the JV partners signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to assess the viability of processing Tick Hill's tailings and other ore materials at the Lorena processing plant, located 15 km east of Cloncurry. This initiative aims to expedite the re-commencement of gold production in the region.
The JV also plans to evaluate the feasibility of reopening the historical open pit mine at Tick Hill, with the goal of extending the project's life and enhancing gold production. An independent preliminary economic assessment has concluded that the proposed tailings retreatment plan is both technically and financially viable, recommending progression to a final feasibility study.
Through these strategic initiatives, AuKing Mining is actively advancing the Cloncurry gold project, aiming to unlock significant value and establish a sustainable gold production operation in the Cloncurry region.
The Mt Freda Complex, covering an area of no more than 6 sq kms, looking from north-west to the south-east, 30kms south of the Lorena plant.
The Mt Freda Mining Complex is a key element in the proposed restart of mining operations at the Cloncurry Gold Project in northern Queensland. A comprehensive drilling program, consisting of an estimated 10,000 meters of combined diamond and reverse circulation (RC) drilling, is planned at Mt Freda to support the project’s development.
Koongie Park Copper-Zinc Project (Western Australia)
Koongie Park project (also known as Halls Creek project) lies within the highly mineralized Halls Creek Mobile Belt. The area also hosts the Savannah (Sally Malay) and Copernicus nickel projects, the former Argyle diamond mine and the Nicolsons gold mining operation of Pantoro Limited. Koongie Park is located about 25 kms southwest of the regional centre of Halls Creek on the Great Northern Highway in northeastern Western Australia.
In February 2025, AuKing entered into a earn-in agreement with Cobalt Blue (ASX:COB) whereby COB can earn up to 75 percent interest in the Koongie Park project.
The project contains three deposits of note: Onedin and Sandiego copper-zinc-gold deposits, and the Emull copper deposit.
Onedin and Sandiego are both in advanced exploration stages with a total mineral resource estimate of 4.8 Mt and 4.1 Mt, respectively, containing copper, zinc, gold, silver and lead. The Sandiego prospect boasts a scoping study (released in June 2023) that highlights an 11-year life of mine with a processing capacity of 750 ktpa and pre-production capex of $135 million for a 2.5 year payback. Economics highlight a pre-tax NPV of $177 million and 40 percent IRR.
The Emull base metal deposit has received significant drilling by previous owner Northern Star Resources several years ago and subsequently by AuKing in 2022. The deposit has a maiden resource estimate of 12.2 Mt, containing copper, zinc, lead and silver, with significant upside potential as more drilling is performed.
Mkuju Uranium Project (Tanzania)
Mkuju is situated immediately to the southeast of the world class Nyota uranium project that was the primary focus of exploration and development feasibility studies by then ASX-listed Mantra Resources (ASX:MRU). Not long after completion of feasibility studies for Nyota in early 2011, MRU announced a AU$1.16 billion takeover offer from the Russian group ARMZ. The takeover was finalised in mid-2011.
During the latter part of 2023, AuKing Mining completed a Stage 1 exploration program at Mkuju which comprised a combination of rock chip, soil geochemistry sampling, shallow auger drilling and initial diamond drilling. Some very encouraging results were obtained from this program which have formed the basis for a 11,000 m drilling program.
Board and Management Team
Peter Tighe – Non-executive Chairman
Peter Tighe started his career in the family-owned JH Leavy & Co business, which is one of the longest established fruit and vegetable wholesaling businesses in the Brisbane Markets at Rocklea. As the owner and managing director of JH Leavy & Co, Tighe expanded the company along with highly respected farms and packhouses that have been pleased to supply the company with top quality fruit and vegetables for wholesale/export for over 40 years. Tighe has been a director of Brisbane Markets Limited (BML) since 1999 and is currently the deputy chairman. BML is the owner of the Brisbane Markets site and is responsible for the ongoing management and development of its $400 million asset portfolio. As the proprietor of the site, BML has over 250 leases in place including selling floors, industrial warehousing, retail stores and commercial offices. BML acknowledges its role as an economic hub of Queensland, facilitating the trade of $1.5 billion worth of fresh produce annually, and supporting local and regional businesses of the horticulture industry.
Paul Williams – Managing Director
Paul Williams holds both Bachelor of Arts and Law Degrees from the University of Queensland and practised as a corporate and commercial lawyer with Brisbane legal firm HopgoodGanim Lawyers for 17 years. He ultimately became an equity partner of HopgoodGanim Lawyers before joining Eastern Corporation as their chief executive officer in August 2004. In mid-2006, Williams joined Mitsui Coal Holdings as general counsel, participating in the supervision of the coal mining interests and business development activities within the multinational Mitsui & Co group. Williams is well-known in the Brisbane investment community as well as in Sydney and Melbourne and brings to the AKN board a broad range of commercial and legal expertise – especially in the context of mining and exploration activities. He also has a strong focus on corporate governance and the importance of clear and open communication of corporate activity to the investment markets.
Mark Fisher – Non-executive Director
Mark Fisher is a highly accomplished resources executive with over 35 years of experience. His skills and experience include strategic business planning, feasibility, project management, organization design, mine engineering and mine management. Mark’s combination of skills and depth of experience has consistently produced profitable and sustainable outcomes in complex settings delivering increased shareholder value.
Mark’s extensive global leadership and operational experience includes senior positions with Placer Dome Inc and Barrick Gold Corporation over a period of decades. In his last corporate role, Mark was President of the Global Copper division for Barrick Gold Corporation, executing the development strategy for its portfolio of key copper assets in South America, Africa, Middle East and Asia.
Dr Kylie Prendergast – Non-executive Director
Kylie Prendergast is an experienced geologist and technical leader with more than 25 years’ experience within the international and resource sector. She currently holds the position of non-Executive Director at Helix Resources Limited (ASX: HLX) and has worked across a range of different operating jurisdictions, including significant in-country assignments and expatriate roles. This has included substantial business development, project technical and economic evaluation, and commercial management including direct interaction with a range of stakeholders in global resource capital markets.
Previously the Managing Director at leading industry consultant Mining Associates, Dr Prendergast has held senior leadership roles with Felix Gold Limited (Managing Director), Mawarid Mining (Oman – GM Exploration and Business development), Batu Mining (Mongolia – Senior Geologist) and Gold Fields St Ives (Project Generation Geochemist). Prior to that she worked in technical geology positions with BHP Billiton, Ivanhoe Mines (Mongolia) and North Limited.
Nick Harding – Non-Executive Director
Nick Harding is a Certified Practicing Accountant (FCPA) with extensive executive and senior management experience across the resources and agribusiness sectors in the areas of finance, commercial, corporate governance and company administration. He possesses significant experience in equity raisings, debt funding, management and statutory reporting, corporate governance, financial modelling and the preparation of feasibility studies.
Nick has held the roles of Executive Director, Chief Financial Officer, and Company Secretary through his professional services company for a number of ASX listed junior exploration companies over the past 16 years, taking some of these through to the evaluation phase and into development and production.
Prior to this, over a 20-year period, Nick has held senior finance management positions within WMC Resources, Normandy Mining/Newmont Australia and Beach Energy across various commodities including gold, copper, nickel, uranium, industrial minerals and oil and gas.
Chris Bittar – Exploration Manager
Chris Bittar was previously senior project geologist at Pantoro Limited’s Norseman Project in Western Australia, where he supervised the planning and execution of near-mine exploration and resource development programs as part of the Definitive Feasibility Study program at Norseman. Prior to his Pantoro role, Bittar held senior geologist roles with Millennium Minerals (Nullagine Gold project) and Pilbara Minerals (Pilgangoora Lithium project), and exploration geologist roles with Sumitomo Metal Mining Oceania and Northern Minerals (Browns Range rare earths project in WA). In these roles, Bittar gained extensive experience in taking projects from greenfield exploration to resource development and up to mine-ready feasibility study stage. This experience included supervision of multiple drilling campaigns, geological interpretation, data management and project reporting. Bittar has also maintained a strong commitment to company safety policies and procedures.
Paul Marshall – Chief Financial Officer and Company Secretary
Paul Marshall is a chartered accountant with a Bachelor of Law degree, and a post Graduate Diploma in Accounting and Finance. He has 30 years of professional experience having worked for Ernst and Young for 10 years, and subsequently twenty years spent in commercial roles as company secretary and CFO for a number of listed and unlisted companies mainly in the resources sector. Marshall has extensive experience in all aspects of company financial reporting, corporate regulatory and governance areas, business acquisition and disposal due diligence, capital raising and company listings and company secretarial responsibilities.
Assays Results Confirm Overland Uranium Intersections in Near-Surface Mineralisation
Highlights:
- Assays confirm Uranium intersections in the first hole where a calcrete-hosted surficial uranium occurrence was detected, atOV047:
- 2m at 92ppm U3O8 from 26m, including:
- 1m at 103ppm U3O8 from 27m;
- 1m at 82ppm U3O8 from 26m; and
- 1m at 72ppm U3O8 from 31m
- 2m at 92ppm U3O8 from 26m, including:
- Significant mineralisation potential at Overland: The modern drainage setting indicates an anomalous mineralised zone up to 6m thick and over 1km wide, open in all directions.
- Dual Uranium potential: Assays now confirm Overland demonstrates potential for both near surface, calcrete-hosted uranium, and deeper, ISR-amenable deposits, highlighting the strategic significance of AR3’s 4,000km² exploration land package.
- Drilling and assays continue:
- Assays from the remainder of the infill holes following up OV047 are expected in the June quarter 2025.
- Our 2025 drilling program will continue through April, following up the surficial uranium discovery and deeper ISR-amenable deposits.
- Engage with this announcement at the AR3 investor hub.
AR3 Managing Director and CEO, Travis Beinke, said:
“These assay results from the first hole where the occurrence of shallow calcrete-hosted uranium was discovered underscore the significant potential of the Overland project. The search for both shallow calcrete-hosted uranium, and sedimentary hosted, ISR amenable targets, continues in this frontier uranium play.
“We look forward to providing further updates on our ongoing drill program and sharing assay results as AR3 pursues active uranium exploration activity at Overland.”
Figure 1: Section A- A’ displaying lithology interpretation, natural gamma responses (cps) and pXRF uranium responses (ppmU). In relation to the disclosure of pXRF results, the Company cautions that estimates of uranium elemental abundance from pXRF results should not be considered a proxy for quantitative analysis of a laboratory assay result. Assay results are required to determine the actual widths and grade of the mineralisation. The company uses an Olympus Vanta M Series portable X-ray Fluorescence (pXRF) analyzer to screen Air Core drilling samples for mineralization prior to submitting samples to a commercial laboratory for assay. This provides an initial understanding of the mineralization distribution before sampling, ensuring submitted samples are representative of the targeted mineralization. While pXRF confirms the presence of mineralization, it does not accurately determine elemental concentrations due to limitations such as a small analysis window, uneven distribution, shallow penetration depth, and irregular surfaces. The pXRF results are indicative and the pXRF readings are subject to confirmation by chemical analysis from an independent laboratory.
Figure 2: Strip log displaying drill hole OV047 lithology, natural gamma responses (cps), pXRF uranium responses (ppm U) and chemical assay results (ppm U3O8)
The assay results conform with down hole gamma responses and in-field pXRF measurements for contained uranium in OV047. This provides continued confidence that these immediate field- based measurements can guide drill hole targeting at Overland.
Now supported by these recent assays and significant uranium intersections, follow-up drilling of OV047’s anomalous gamma and pXRF uranium readings in shallow carbonate-cemented sediments, point to the potential for a widespread continuation of calcrete hosted uranium mineralisation.
The follow-up drilling, consisting of nine drill holes targeting the shallow carbonate-cemented sediments, have consistently confirmed anomalous gamma and pXRF uranium responses1. The discovery remains open in all directions for calcrete-hosted uranium mineralisation. The mineralisation spans an extensive area, with a potential strike length stretching dozens of kilometres along the modern drainage profile and a width exceeding one kilometre.
The follow up drilling was conducted at 100 to 600 metre spacings to depths of up to 42 metres, with anomalous zones occurring between 20 and 32 metre depths (Figure 1: section A-A’ ).
Initial indications of a shallow uranium occurrence at Target 1 of EL6678 came in drill hole OV047, which intersected a 6 metre interval containing anomalous gamma and pXRF uranium responses. Gamma responses peaked at 741 counts per second (cps), with maximum pXRF uranium response of 105ppm uranium in OV047. Subsequent drilling has provided further evidence of this style of mineralisation, with gamma responses peaking at 1,010cps in hole OV050 and additional anomalous pXRF uranium values exceeding 50ppm occurring in holes OV050 and OV053. The identified anomalous zones range from two to six metres thick.
Mineralogical assessments of hole OV047 drill cuttings through scanning electron microscope (SEM) and micro XRF analysis indicate that uranium is hosted in the secondary calcite cementation of both the limestone and the sandy sediments in this setting. Indicative uranium levels of up to ~350ppm uranium have been detected in the calcite cement infilling these sediments. The uranium within the calcite cement was identified by analysing samples with a Bruker M4 Tornado Plus μXRF instrument operated by Adelaide Microscopy at the University of Adelaide2.
This shallow sedimentary uranium mineralisation in secondary carbonate cementation is similar to Namibia’s surficial uranium deposits, as found at Paladin Energy’s Langer Heinrich mine or Deep Yellow’s Tumas project. Similar calcrete-hosted deposits are also found in Western Australia at Cameco’s Yeelirrie deposit and Toro Energy’s Wiluna project.
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