www.bondimining.com.au
Bondi Mining’s principal exploration focus is the discovery of high grade uranium deposits. In addition the company is advancing the phosphate potential of its Northern Territory Murphy tenement.
Bondi Mining enters agreement with JOGMEC over North Maureen Project
Brisbane-based exploration company Bondi Mining (ASX: BOM) has entered into a joint venture with the Japanese government resource entity Japan Oil, Gas and Metals National Corporation to invest up to A$900,000 in exploration over Bondi's 100% owned North Maureen Project in Queensland.
The North Maureen Project in Queensland is a large package of tenements (totalling some 670 km2) containing a number of untested targets beneath cover which display similar geological characteristics to the Maureen and Ben Lomond deposits.
These tenements lie immediately to the north of Mega Uranium Ltd’s Maureen uranium deposit which contains an NI43-101 compliant Indicated Resource1 of 3.1 million tonnes at 0.09% U3O8 (5.95 Mlbs U3O8) and an Inferred Resource of 0.15 million tonnes at 0.11% U3O8 (0.38 Mlbs U3O8).
Targets at North Maureen are also geologically similar to Mega's Ben Lomond Deposit, which has an NI43-101 Indicated Resource of 1.33 million tonnes @ 0.27%
U3O8 (7.9Mlbs U3O8) and an Inferred Resource of 0.6 million tonnes @ 0.21% U3O8 (2.8Mlbs U3O8) as well as a substantial molybdenum credit at an average grade of 0.15% Mo.
"This is the second uranium JV between JOGMEC and Bondi" Rick Valenta, Managing Director of Bondi Mining, said.
"This agreement reinforces the discovery potential of the North Maureen project, and we are delighted to continue to work with a well-respected partner like JOGMEC," Dr Valenta said.
JOGMEC is a Japanese Government entity established to assist in the stable supply of oil, gas and mineral resources to the Japanese economy. Among other things, JOGMEC seeks to gain entry into high-potential mineral exploration projects, through the provision of funding and technical assistance, with the aim of later transferring equity interest to a Japanese private-sector company.
During 2007, the company flew a detailed airborne geophysical survey, comprising 21,000 line kilometres and in 2008 drilled 56 RC holes for 3960m, testing conceptual targets for unconformity hosted uranium mineralization. Drilling intersected the expected sedimentary cover sequence, followed by Permo-Carboniferous volcanics, granites, and in some cases Proterozoic basement schists. Elevated scintillometer values were encountered in some drillholes.
The joint venture initially plans to carry out further ground-based geophysical and geochemical surveys in order to identify and prioritise drill targets.
In April 2009, Bondi Mining Ltd was awarded a grant of A$144,000 through the Queensland government’s “Collaborative Drilling Initiative” program. The program provides 50% of expenses (up to A$144,000) to assist with the cost of drilling of geological targets in under-explored parts of Queensland. The grants are part of the Queensland Government's $29.08 million Smart Mining -
Future Prosperity program.
