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Valor Resources Limited(Valor) or (the Company) (ASX: VAL) is pleased to advise that it has confirmed several priority drill targets for the upcoming 2023 field season at the Cluff Lake Uranium Project, located 7km east of the Cluff Lake Uranium deposits on the western flank of Canada’s world-class Athabasca Basin (Figure 2).
HIGHLIGHTS
- Four priority targets identified at the Cluff Lake Uranium Project in Canada’s Athabasca Basin following a comprehensive review of all available exploration data, including data obtained from the extensive airborne gravity survey completed last year.
- Two of the targets located at the Moose Lake prospect are prioritised for drill testing.
- Structural interpretation combined with geophysical inversion models, all available surface geochemistry and drill-hole information have been used to rank and prioritise the targets for basement-hosted and unconformity-type uranium deposits.
- The depth to the top of the Athabasca Basin/basement unconformity has been derived from historical airborne EM (MEGATEM) magnetic and drilling data, as well as Valor’s 2022 airborne gravity gradiometry (AGG) survey data.
- Exceptionally high-grade rare earth element (REE) assays of up to 9.15% TREO1 returned from on- ground field checking of targets and surface sampling of historic trenches at the Moose Lake prospect.
- The Cluff Lake Project is located 7km east of Orano’s Cluff Lake Mine, which produced 62.5Mlbs @ 0.92% U3O8 and 5km from Orano’s/UEX’s Shea Creek deposits, which combine to form one of the largest undeveloped uranium resources in the Athabasca Basin.
- Follow-up field program proposed including radon surveys over targets before drilling later in 2023.
Surface sampling at Moose Lake Prospect (Sample# 212412 – 6.9% TREO).
Figure 1: Cluff Lake Project – Targets identified through historical data review and new geophysical interpretation.
The targets have been refined following the interpretation of new airborne gravity gradiometry (AGG) and magnetic data, re-processing of historical airborne EM data (MEGATEM) and initial fieldwork at the Cluff Lake Project.
An earlier review of historic exploration data from the Cluff Lake area identified seven prospective targets from geological mapping, surface sampling, diamond drilling and re-processed historical geophysical data. The results of this review were reported on 7th June 2022 in the ASX announcement titled “Highly prospective Uranium targets identified at Cluff Lake Project near historical uranium mine”.
Subsequent to that, the Company completed an airborne gravity gradiometry survey in June 2022 and, following an interpretation of these and other data, high-priority targets have been defined (Figure 1).
The airborne gravity survey was designed to identify gravity lows which can be caused by clay alteration of the host rock, potentially due to hydrothermal fluids associated with unconformity uranium deposits (see Figure 3).
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This article includes content from Valor Resources, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
VAL:AU
Boss Set to Ship First U308 from Honeymoon
Highlights
- Startup production exceeding ramp-up schedule per the feasibility study (FS) estimates
- NIMCIX columns 2 and 3 on target for commissioning in Q3 and Q4, respectively in 2024
- Commissioning continues to advance, with key metrics remaining ahead of FS estimates:
- oWellfields continue to average 80 - 100mg/L vs FS estimate of 47mg/L (~100% uplift)
- oIon Exchange loaded resin recoverability remains at 100%
- oResin loading normalising at FS estimate of 27 g/L
- oElution performance exceeding FS estimate at 7 – 9 g/L
- First uranium sale to occur with revenue being received this quarter
- Boss remains highly leveraged to rising uranium price
Boss will now make its first delivery to European nuclear utilities under its existing sales contracts, with revenue to be received in the current quarter.
With NIMCIX Column 1 performing to expectations and construction of Columns 2 and 3 on track for completion in the September and December quarters, 2024 respectively, Boss expects production to total at least ~850,000lbs of U308 by June 30, 2025, in line with its Feasibility Study schedule1.
Boss Managing Director Duncan Craib said:“The start-up phase at Honeymoon is proceeding comfortably to plan, with all the key metrics running in line with, or exceeding, the forecasts contained in the Feasibility Study schedule.
“Construction of the second and third columns is also advancing well, ensuring we are on track to continue increasing our production rates. Total production in FY26 is set to meet or exceed our feasibility study forecasts at 1.63Mlb. The addition of columns 4, 5 and 6 are forecast to further increase the production rate to nameplate capacity of 2.45Mlb/annum by year three.”
Figure 1: Drummed uranium ready for first shipment
Figure 2: Construction of columns 2 and 3 nearing completion to increase Honeymoon's production profile
Production update
Operational focus over the coming months remains on optimisation of the ion exchange, elution, precipitation and drying and packing processes.
Wellfield performance continues to impress, with tenors from individual wellfields into the PLS averaging 80 - 100 mg/L. Honeymoon’s feasibility study assumed PLS grade of 47 mg/L based on results from the project’s previous operation. Boss is managing the grade of uranium being leached to maximise wellfield recoveries.
Consumption of reagents in the wellfields of sulphuric acid and ferric (pH and Eh) are normalising as per FS expectations. The lixiviant chemistry, as proved during the field leach trial, continues to demonstrate superior performance at commercial throughput rates. The increased leach efficiency leads to a more efficient loading on the ion exchange resin, effectively lowering operating costs as less reagents and power are required per drum of uranium.
Stripping of uranium from the loaded resin continues to be virtually 100%, also demonstrating that the ion exchange process is working as designed, resulting in a high-grade concentrated eluate greater than 7-9 g/L.
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Lo Herma ISR Uranium Project, Resource Drilling Funded
HIGHLIGHTS
- Upcoming Q3 resource drilling is fully funded
- Drilling will target expansion and upgrade of the current Inferred Mineral Resource Estimate of 5.71 Mlbs U3O8 at average 630ppm
- Drilling to commence in the coming weeks - starting late July or early August
- Planned rights entitlement offer to all shareholders on the same terms as the recent placement - details to be provided in due course
As previously advised on 2nd of May 2024, the planned 2024 drilling permit at Lo Herma allows for up to 76 drill hole locations including construction of up to 5 groundwater monitoring wells. This next phase of drilling will focus on expanding the resource areas and where possible, upgrading the current mineral resource classification (Table 1). Collection of important data including, hydrogeologic parameters of the mineralised aquifers and collection of rock core samples for metallurgical testing will be also prioritised. GTI intends to mobilise drilling rigs to Lo Herma as soon as the activity is fully permitted which is anticipated to be during late July or early August 2024.
Following completion of the 2024 drill program at Lo Herma, GTI intends to publish an updated mineral resource estimate and exploration target range for the project. The Company expects that the updated mineral resource estimate will support near-term development of a Scoping Study to demonstrate the economic potential of the project.
GTI Executive Director Bruce Lane commented, “We are pleased and excited to have received investor support and funding to continue moving forward with our planned resource expansion drilling at Lo Herma. Matt and the team in Wyoming have put us in a great position to complete the drilling program this quarter, with a revised mineral resource estimate to be rapidly advanced post-drilling. This work prepares GTI for a potential Lo Herma scoping study which we hope to commence later this year on the basis that we can significantly grow the uranium resource estimate to a similar scale to ISR uranium mines currently being constructed or planned in Wyoming at Ur-Energy’s Shirley Basin project & Encore’s Energy’s Gas Hills project.”
FIGURE 1. GTI WYOMING PROJECT LOCATIONS
LO HERMA GEOLOGIC SUMMARY
The Lo Herma project is located on the southern end of the west flank of the Powder River Basin (PRB), a regional asymmetric synclinal basin hosting a sedimentary rock sequence of about 15,000 feet in the deeper portions of the basin. The basin is bounded by the Bighorn Mountains on the west, the Black Hills to the east, and the Casper Arch, Laramie Mountains, and Hartville Uplift along the southern margin. Along the edges of the basin, progressively older sedimentary units outcrop at the surface as you move away from the synclinal axis of the basin.
The target host geology for Lo Herma project is located in and around the contact of the Eocene Wasatch Formation (Wasatch) and the Paleocene Fort Union Formation (Fort Union).
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This article includes content from GTI Energy, licensed for the purpose of publishing on Investing News Australia. This article does not constitute financial product advice. It is your responsibility to perform proper due diligence before acting upon any information provided here. Please refer to our full disclaimer here.
