Uranium stocks could regain a healthy glow. According to Cameco President and CEO Tim Gitzel, as quoted by World Nuclear News, “Increasing demand for nuclear means increasing demand for uranium, which brings us to the second factor that is driving our growing optimism - demand for uranium is rising at precisely the same time that supply is becoming less certain. We know that utilities have not been replacing what they consume annually under long-term contracts. This has led to a growing wedge of uncovered uranium requirements." All could be beneficial for uranium stocks, such as Skyharbour Resources (TSXV: SYH) (OTCQX: SYHBF), Cameco Corporation (TSX: CCO) (NYSE: CCJ), Uranium Energy Corporation (NYSE: UEC), Denison Mines Corp (TSX: DML) (NYSE: DNN), and Energy Fuels (NYSE: UUUU) (TSX: EFR).
In addition, we have to consider that uranium supply is low, with growing demand. In fact, according to The International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) Uranium Production Specialist Dr. Adrienne Hanly, as noted by Stockhead, “uranium fuel inventory levels for US nuclear utilities are at just 16 months of requirements – below recommended 2+ years minimum.”
Look at Skyharbour Resources Ltd. (TSXV: SYH) (OTCQX: SYHBF), For Example
Skyharbour Resources Ltd. announce plans for a multi-phased drill campaign at its recently optioned 73,294 hectare Russell Lake Uranium Project strategically located in the central core of the Eastern Athabasca Basin of northern Saskatchewan. Skyharbour is planning 10,000 metres of diamond drilling over three phases to be completed by September of next year and is fully funded for the drill campaign.
Russell Lake Project Location Map:
http://www.skyharbourltd.com/_resources/images/SKY-RussellLake-20220325-Inset.jpg
Jordan Trimble, President and CEO of Skyharbour, stated: “We are very excited to be announcing plans for our multi-phased, 10,000 m drill campaign at the Russell Lake Uranium Project. This is a key milestone for Skyharbour and will provide consistent news flow for the next year. Uranium properties with the pedigree and potential of Russell Lake are rare given the high-grade mineralization in historical drill holes coupled with the many highly prospective exploration targets that offer the potential to generate new discoveries scattered across the large project area.”
“Furthermore, Skyharbour continues to grow its prospect generator business with several new partner companies optioning the South Falcon East, Wallee and Usam Projects. Over the next year, the Company is anticipating the largest combined drilling and exploration campaigns at its core projects of Russell and Moore, as well as at its partner-funded projects of East Preston, Hook Lake, Mann Lake, Yurchison, South Falcon East, Wallee and Usam.”
Phase 1 Diamond Drilling Program at Russell Lake:
The Company is planning to carry out a first-phase, 3,000 metre drill program to follow up on notable historic exploration and findings, as well as to test additional targets with the potential to generate new discoveries. This fully funded and permitted drill program will test previously identified prospective target areas, some of which host high-grade uranium mineralization in historical drill holes. Of particular interest for this inaugural drilling program will be the Grayling Zone. This program will be the first of several phases of drilling at the project.
After extensive compilation and review of the relevant exploration data, special attention was given to the structural setting of the geological, geochemical and geophysical data at the Grayling Zone for exploration purposes. Wide-spaced drilling at the Grayling Zone encountered an 800 m long discontinuous zone of uranium mineralization in a ~2,200 m section of thrust-faulted conductive basement rocks (i.e. graphitic pelitic gneisses) up to 100 m thick, which lie along the overall >10 km long Grayling-M-Zone conductor trend. Uranium mineralization identified to date includes basement-hosted, unconformity-hosted and perched varieties associated with the nose of a basement thrust wedge (SMDI 2151, 3563, 3564). The best historical drill hole at the Grayling Zone is hole RL-85-07, where a 0.3 m interval grading 3.45% U3O8 was intersected a depth of 363.2 metres, as well as an interval of 0.1% U3O8 over 0.5 m at a depth of 366.4 metres (SMDI 2151). Additional drillholes containing significant uranium mineralization related to the Grayling thrust fault are located along the >10 km long extension of the Grayling conductor trend, both on-property at the M-Zone Extension (SMDI 5540) and off-property at the M-Zone (SMDI 2139, 3569) on Denison Mines’ adjacent Wheeler River property, further highlighting the potential fertility of this major conductor trend.
Significant structural offsets with the potential to act as major traps for uranium mineralizing fluids have been identified at the Grayling Zone. Traps such as these are the setting for high-grade zones of uranium mineralization at Denison’s adjacent Wheeler River Project (Phoenix and Gryphon deposits) as well as Skyharbour’s adjacent Moore Uranium Project (Maverick and Maverick East Zones). The Company’s inaugural drill program at the Russell Lake project will be focusing on the large gaps between mineralized holes in order to further define the mineralization and controlling structures at the Grayling Zone, as well as testing the down-dip and down-plunge extensions of the Grayling thrust fault into the basement rocks which have seen limited historical drilling.
Russell Lake Uranium Project:
The Russell Lake Project is a large, advanced-stage uranium exploration property totalling 73,294 hectares strategically located between Cameco’s Key Lake and McArthur River Projects and adjoining Denison’s Wheeler River Project to the west and Skyharbour’s Moore Uranium Project to the east. Highway 914, which services the McArthur River mine, runs through the western extent of the Property and greatly enhances accessibility. Similarly, a high-voltage powerline situated alongside Highway 914. Skyharbour’s acquisition of Russell Lake creates a large, nearly contiguous block of highly prospective uranium claims totalling 108,999 hectares between the Russell Lake and the Moore uranium projects.
There has been a meaningful amount of historical exploration carried out at Russell Lake but most of it was conducted prior to 2010. The Property has been the subject of over 95,000 metres of drilling in over 230 drill holes. The Property’s claims are in good standing for 2-22 years with significant assessment credits built-up from previous exploration programs.
Several notable exploration targets exist on the property including the Grayling Zone, the M-Zone Extension target, the Little Man Lake target, the Christie Lake target, and the Fox Lake Trail target. More than 35 kilometres of largely untested prospective conductors in areas of low magnetic intensity exist on the Property as well.
At the Grayling Zone, drilling in a 2,200 m long section of the >10 km Grayling-M-Zone conductor trend graphitic intersected an 800 metres long discontinuous zone of basement-hosted uranium mineralization with localized perched and unconformity-hosted associated mineralization along a >100 m thick interval of thrust-faulted graphitic pelitic gneisses. Drill hole RL-85-07 intersected 3.45% U3O8 over 0.3 metres at a depth of 363.2 metres and 0.1% U3O8 over 0.5m at a depth of 366.4 metres. This target is prospective for additional high-grade uranium discoveries and is open in several directions.
Historical drilling at neighbouring Denison’s M-Zone along the >10km long Grayling conductor trend intersected basement hosted uranium of 0.70% U3O8 over 5.8 metres at a depth of 374.0 metres. Like the Grayling Zone, the mineralization is hosted by a graphitic thrust fault. The northeast extension of the M-Zone-Grayling corridor onto the Property, the M-Zone Extension target, has seen limited drilling, but mineralization was intersected in historical drilling, returning 0.7 metres of 0.123% U3O8 at 619.1 metres depth in hole MZE-11-03.
The Little Man Lake Zone target is 500 metres long, 10 to 15 metres thick, 25 to 35 metres wide, and is a zone of prospective geology associated with an unconformity depression. The last drilling in this area was in 1989, prior to modern uranium exploration models, with historical uranium grades ranging from 0.03% up to 0.1% U3O8 at around 300 metres depth.
At the Fox Lake Trail target area, uranium mineralization was intersected in a few historical drill holes. Significant intercepts include 0.0743% U3O8 over 1.0 metres at 525.5 metres depth in hole FLT-08-06, and 0.053% U3O8 over 0.3 metres at 516.9 metres depth in hole FLT-11-14. A prospective quartzite ridge runs through the area along with anomalous geochemistry in faulted basement metasediments. Significant sandstone-hosted sulphides are also found in this area. The Christie Lake target area contains basement-hosted uranium mineralization with historical drill results returning 0.17% U3O8 over 0.4 metres at 436.4 metres depth in hole CL-10-03. A prospective clay altered basement fault system runs throughout this area.
In addition to the aforementioned target areas, there are more than 35 kilometres of untested conductors on the Property underlain by rocks of low magnetic intensity, suggestive of prospective graphitic meta-pelitic basement rocks. The Project has seen limited exploration in the previous twelve years, so minimal modern exploration techniques and methods have been used to expand existing zones of mineralization as well as to make new discoveries.
There is a fully permitted exploration camp on the Project suitable for over forty people located on the highway and within 5 kilometres of Denison’s Phoenix deposit. Skyharbour has an option to acquire an initial 51% interest in the project and can acquire up to a 100% interest in the project from Rio Tinto (see news release dated July 19th, 2022).
Other related developments from around the markets include:
Cameco Corporation announced that it has signed a uranium supply agreement with the China Nuclear International Corporation, a subsidiary of the China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC), one of the country’s largest nuclear power operators. The contract, finalized earlier this year, was marked as part of the China International Import Expo 2022. “China is counting on nuclear energy to play a major role in its commitment to achieve net-zero emissions, and CNNC is a large and growing part of that effort,” said Cameco president and CEO Tim Gitzel. “Cameco is very pleased to continue increasing our contribution towards the attainment of China’s important climate goals.”
Uranium Energy Corporation announced that the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality has approved the Company’s submission for a renewed and expanded radioactive material license for its Hobson Central Processing Plant. UEC’s amended RML from the TCEQ increases the Hobson Processing Plant’s licensed production capacity to 4 million pounds of U3O8 annually. This distinguishes the plant as having the largest licensed capacity in Texas and the second largest in the United States. The Hobson Plant anchors UEC’s hub-and-spoke in-situ recovery production platform in South Texas and will process uranium loaded resin recovered from multiple satellite projects including the Palangana and Burke Hollow ISR projects.
Denison Mines Corporation announced additional highlights from the completion of the highly successful leaching phase of the ongoing Phoenix in-situ recovery Feasibility Field Test at the Company's 95% owned Wheeler River project. Recovered approximately 14,400 lbs U3O8 over ten days of active leaching following completion of initial acidification of the Leaching Area. Returned maximum uranium head grade of recovered solution of 43 grams per litre when the leaching phase of the FFT was completed, with grades still rising (indicative of the ramp-up segment of a well production profile). Achieved suitable acidification for ISR mining within 7 days post initial injection at 5 metre well spacing (GWR-41) and within 17 days for 10 metre well spacing (GWR-38). Demonstrated ability to achieve and maintain uranium mass flow rate consistent with the assumptions in the Pre-Feasibility Study prepared for the Project in 2018. Further demonstrated hydraulic control of injected solution during the FFT, reporting no responses in the monitoring wells outside of the designed FFT test area.
Energy Fuels Inc., a leading U.S. producer of uranium and rare earth elements announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to sell three wholly-owned subsidiaries that together hold Energy Fuels' Alta Mesa ISR Project to enCore Energy for total consideration of $120 million. The Transaction is expected to close by the end of 2022 or early 2023. The Transaction is significant for the Company, as the cash received is expected to fully finance much of the Company's uranium, REE, vanadium and medical isotope business plans for the next two to three years without diluting shareholders.
Legal Disclaimer / Except for the historical information presented herein, matters discussed in this article contains forward-looking statements that are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such statements. Winning Media is not registered with any financial or securities regulatory authority and does not provide nor claims to provide investment advice or recommendations to readers of this release. For making specific investment decisions, readers should seek their own advice. Winning Media is only compensated for its services in the form of cash-based compensation. Pursuant to an agreement Winning Media has been paid three thousand five hundred dollars for advertising and marketing services for Skyharbour Resources Ltd. by Skyharbour Resources Ltd. We own ZERO shares of Skyharbour Resources Ltd. Please click here for full disclaimer.
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