www.marenicaenergy.com.au
Marenica Energy's (ASX: MEY) strategy is to focus on the evaluation of the Marenica Project as well as to identify and acquire other uranium opportunities globally.
The Company's principal asset is the Marenica Uranium Project located in the uranium rich Damara Province in Namibia. The project covers 527sq km, with high prospectivity for both secondary and primary uranium deposits.
West Australian Metals increases Marenica Uranium resource to 122 million tonnes
Dual-listed uranium company West Australian Metals (ASX: WME, NSX: WAM) has raised the bar by announcing an interim upgrade to the Mineral Resource for its 80%-owned Marenica Uranium Project in Namibia in Southern Africa.
The upgrade, which includes the results of just over one third of the new drilling and re-probing data from WME’s 2009 exploration program, has resulted in approximately 15% of the resource being upgraded to the Indicated category and an increase in overall tonnage and U3O8 content.
The revised resource, which was undertaken by the company’s resource consultants SRK Consulting (UK) Ltd, totals 122Mt grading 140ppm U3O8 comprising an Indicated Mineral Resource of 16Mt grading 170ppm U3O8 and an Inferred Mineral Resource of 106Mt grading 140ppm U3O8 for a combined total of 38.6 million pounds of contained U3O8.
This represents a 9% increase in tonnage and 12% increase in U3O8 content from the previous Inferred Resource estimate completed in July 2008 by Hellman & Schofield.
West Australian Metals chief executive John Young said the company was pleased with the interim resource upgrade, which was completed by SRK to provide guidance on the effectiveness and progress of the overall program of drilling and re-probing at Marenica.
“Importantly, with only just over a third of the new data incorporated, we have been successful in converting 15% of the resource to the Indicated category and increasing the overall tonnage and contained uranium, as well as improving the grade," Mr Young said.
“This represents another important step forward for the project as we move towards the completion of a comprehensive resource upgrade scheduled for early next year as the foundation for our Scoping and Feasibility studies moving forward."
The resource was based on information available as at the end of September 2009 and comprises data collected during previous studies by Gold Fields South Africa as well as work by WME.
Importantly, with only 39% of the new probe data available for this interim estimation, 15% of the Inferred Mineral Resource was converted to an Indicated Mineral Resource category.
Results from a further 728 holes for 15,552m are to be added for the final updated resource estimation, due to be completed in January 2010.
The updated Mineral Resource is presented the table below, based on an 80ppm U3O8 cut-off.
Further excellent probe results were received from both historical and new drill-holes, including 22.8m @ 335ppm eU3O8, which are not included in the interim Mineral Resource estimate.
Also, the down‐hole geophysical probe survey by Terratec Geophysical Consultants continued during October and November 2009.
This program included probing of previously un‐assessed historical (Goldfields) holes and holes drilled by WME in its current phase of resource drilling.
The betterprobe results from the wide-spaced extensional and in-fill drilling included included 5.5m @ 618ppm eU3O8 from 0.46m, 6.8m @ 377ppm eU3O8 from 1.76m and 8.8m @ 416ppm eU3O8 from 0.66m.
The Marenica Project is located 70km north of Rio Tinto’s Rossing Uranium Mine in one of the most significant emerging uranium provinces in the world.
The project covers 706sq km, with high prospectivity for both secondary and primary uranium deposits.
