Laramide Resources to Move on to PEA at Church Rock Uranium Project

Dual-listed Laramide Resources (TSX:LAM,ASX:LAM) enjoyed a modest share price boost on Tuesday (October 10) after releasing a maiden resource estimate for its Church Rock uranium project in New Mexico.
According to the report, Church Rock has an inferred resource of 33.9 million tons at an average grade of 0.075 percent eU3O8. The news sent the company’s share price up 1.96 percent to close at C$0.26 on the TSX. On the ASX it was flat at AU$0.495.
“The Church Rock Project is a compilation of significant historical work completed by tier one mining and energy companies. This is the first time since discovery that the Project has been combined under one banner without significant royalty burden,” said Marc Henderson, president and CEO of Laramide.

To complete the resource estimate, Laramide consolidated and digitized data from companies that previously operated on the ground covered by Church Rock. The company ended up with a database of 1,667 drill holes totaling approximately 1,841,545 feet of drilling.
“[T]his impressive initial resource at Church Rock clearly demonstrates the District scale potential of the asset. Combined with the NRC licence and other permitting work already completed by previous operators, Laramide is well positioned to benefit from a likely renewal of US domestic uranium production when market conditions warrant,” Henderson added.
While many uranium market participants have been calling for a price recovery, so far this year prices have seen little improvement. As of October 2, the U3O8 spot price was sitting at US$20.25 per pound.
Laramide plans to proceed with a preliminary economic assessment (PEA) at Church Rock this quarter. As part of the process, it will conduct exploration drilling in potentially mineralized areas, as well as “core drilling with ISR process and restoration testing of mineralized materials.”
The company took ownership of Church Rock and the nearby Crownpoint project at the beginning of the year through the acquisition of Hydro Resources, a wholly owned subsidiary of Uranium Resources. The company announced in March that a resource estimate was in the works for Church Rock, and said on Tuesday that it plans to release a resource estimate for Crownpoint in Q1 2018.
In addition to Church Rock and Crownpoint, Laramide holds several other uranium projects: La Sal in Utah, La Jara Mesa in New Mexico and the Australia-based Westmoreland project.
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Securities Disclosure: I, Charlotte McLeod, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.