JNR and partners advance Canadian uranium projects

Vancouver — Joint-venture partners JNR Resources (JNN-V, JNRRF-O) and International Uranium (IUC-T, IUCPF-O) have begun a 17,500-metre summer drilling program at the Moore Lake uranium project, in northern Saskatchewan’s Athabasca basin.

The project that has been explored by various companies over the past three decades. JNR and then-partner Kennecott Canada acquired the project in 1999, and discovered the Maverick zone, with the third hole of their program intersecting classic unconformity-style uranium mineralization. Subsequent drilling returned 0.62% U3O8 over 9.1 metres, including a 0.4-metre interval of 12% U3O8. The Maverick zone was the first new discovery in the basin in several years.

International Uranium optioned the project from JNR in 2003, following the 2002 withdrawal of Kennecott, and has since earned a 75% interest. The partners drilled 51 holes totalling 19,393 metres in 2004, and a further 90 holes totalling 32,628 metres in 2005, and also carried out extensive geophysical programs. The best results were obtained from or near the original Maverick discovery, with examples being 3.5% U3O8 over 5 metres, and 5.14% U3O8 over 6.2 metres (with associated nickel, arsenic, copper, cobalt, silver, and rare earth elements.)

In winter 2005, the partners identified a 10-km-long, 500-metre-wide conductive corridor interpreted as an extension of the conductive zone associated with Maverick mineralization. This in turn triggered the discovery of a number of new targets, including the recently tested 527 and 525 zones, along trend of the Maverick zone. The best hole from the 527 zone returned 1.53% U3O8 over 6.6 metres, including 2.22% U3O8 over 4 metres. Three holes tested the 525 zone, with one returning low-grade basement mineralization, and the others hitting the hangingwall side of the target.

The priority targets of the summer program are the Main mineralized lens of the Maverick zone, and the 527 zone, which together comprise a mineralized 1.7-km length of the minimum 6.5-km-long Maverick structural corridor. More than 50% of this corridor has yet to be drill-tested.

Work is also planned to follow up encouraging results from the Avalon and West Venice grids, where early stage targets were identified. On the Avalon grid, first-pass drilling intersected uranium mineralization in one of five holes, with three others returning anomalous radioactivity. The five holes completed on the West Venice grid all intersected multi-intervals of strongly altered graphitic pelites and graphitic fault zones enriched in uranium and pathfinder elements.

JNR has also launched a summer exploration program at the Rocky Brook uranium property in western Newfoundland, a joint venture with Altius Minerals (ALS-V, ATUSF-O). The partners have approved a $650,000 program for Rocky Brook this year, with funding allocated to airborne geophysics and diamond drilling.

At least 90-100 short holes totalling about 3,000 metres are planned, with drilling slated to start this summer. Exploration has focused on the search for the bedrock sources of two discrete high-grade boulder clusters in glacial till. Historic assays from these boulders range from 1% to 10% uranium oxide, with high-grade silver contents.

JNR can earn a 70% interest in the Rocky Brook property by spending $2.5 million on exploration over four years, and by meeting other conditions. This year’s program will follow up last year’s reconnaissance-scale program, which identified areas of alteration and geochemical enrichment (analogous to the mineralized boulders) in drill core, along with radiometric anomalies in till. These areas will be the priority target for the 2006 program.

JNR, Altius and International Uranium each hold interests in other uranium exploration projects in North America. In addition to its exploration projects, International Uranium has reopened uranium-vanadium mines in the southwestern United States that will feed its wholly owned White Mesa uranium-vanadium mill in southeastern Utah. Initial production rates will be about 3.4 million lbs. uranium and 5.9 million lbs. vanadium. Production is expected to increase as other mines are permitted in the next few years.