IsoEnergy Receives Drilling Permits and Finalizes Plans to Extend Uranium Mineralization at the Hurricane Zone, Athabasca Basin, Saskatchewan
VANCOUVER, Dec. 13, 2018 /CNW/ - IsoEnergy Ltd. ("IsoEnergy" or the "Company") (TSXV: ISO; OTCQX: ISENF) is pleased to announce that it is now in receipt of all required permits for its planned drilling program designed to extend the high-grade uranium mineralization intersected in previously reported drill hole LE18-01A – the Hurricane zone.
Planned Drilling Program Highlights
- The follow-up drill program is planned to begin in early January, is fully funded and consists of 4,500 metres of drilling in 10 drill holes
- Initial drill holes will be 12.5 metre step-outs on section with drill hole LE18-01A
- Subsequent drill holes will step out along strike 25-50 metres in both directions
The discovery drill hole LE18-01A was completed on the 100% owned Larocque East property (the "Property") in the Eastern Athabasca Basin, Saskatchewan in July. A broad, 8.5-metre-long interval of elevated radioactivity (see news release dated July 25, 2018) averages 1.26% U3O8 (above a cutoff of 0.1% U3O8) and includes a zone of off-scale radioactivity (>15,000 cps on an SRAT SPP2 scintillometer (the "SPP2")) that averages 6.45% U3O8 over 1.0 metre. Figure 1 shows the location of the Larocque East property and the Hurricane zone.
Steve Blower, Vice President, Exploration commented: "The geology and geochemistry at the Hurricane zone suggest that the mineralization intersected in drill hole LE18-01A may extend in several directions. Our approach to the follow-up drilling scheduled for January, 2019 will be thorough and systematic to ensure that we understand the controls on mineralization and maximize our chance of success."
Planned Drilling Program
Drilling is planned to commence in January, 2019 after freeze-up in the Athabasca Basin allows ground access to the property. Initial drill holes will determine the nature and extent of the zone on the LE18-01A cross-section, with holes drilled both to the northwest and southeast of drill hole LE18-01A. Drill hole spacing on the section is expected to be approximately 12.5 metres and is shown on the cross-section in Figure 2. Some of the on-section follow-up drill holes will be allowed to penetrate deep into the basement below LE18-01A to explore for basement-hosted uranium mineralization. Once the dimensions and the geology on the LE18-01A cross-section are fully understood, subsequent drill holes will step out along-strike of the Hurricane zone in both directions. The expected step-out distance along-strike is 25-50 metres, depending on the results from the initial drill holes. All permits from the Saskatchewan Ministry of Environment required for the drilling program are now in hand.
The Hurricane Zone
Mineralization at the Hurricane Zone lies beneath 40 metres of overburden and 285 metres of Athabasca sandstone. Basement rocks are dominated by pelitic gneisses that are commonly highly graphitic. Drill hole LE18-01A intersected an 8.5-metre-long interval of uranium mineralization that straddles the sub-Athabasca unconformity and consists of fracture controlled and disseminated pitchblende with hematite and clay from 338.5-347.0 metres (down-hole length).
The Property
Larocque East consists of 6 mineral claims totaling 3,200 hectares and was recently purchased in May, 2018. The Property is owned 100% by IsoEnergy and is not encumbered by any royalties or other interests. Larocque East is immediately adjacent to the north end of IsoEnergy's recently expanded Geiger property and is 35 kilometres northwest of Orano Canada's McClean Lake uranium mine and mill.
The Property covers a 15-kilometre-long northeast extension of the Larocque Lake conductor system; a trend of graphitic metasedimentary basement rocks that is associated with significant uranium mineralization in several occurrences to the southwest of the Larocque East property. The closest of these are the Larocque Lake and Larocque North zones, which are located 6.5 kilometres and 0.4 kilometres, respectively, to the southwest of the western Larocque East property boundary. Drilling at the Larocque Lake zone has returned intersections of up to 29.9% U3O8 over 7.0 metres in drill hole Q22-040. The Larocque East property is located adjacent to the Wollaston-Mudjatik transition zone - a major crustal suture related to most of the major uranium deposits in the eastern Athabasca Basin. Importantly, the vertical distance from surface to the unconformity is short, ranging between 140 metres and 330 metres in previous drilling. A total of 23 historical drill holes have been completed on the Property along approximately 22 kilometres of graphitic conductors.
Qualified Person Statement
The scientific and technical information contained in this news release was prepared by Steve Blower, P.Geo., IsoEnergy's Vice President, Exploration, who is a "qualified person" (as defined in National Instrument 43-101 – Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects). Mr. Blower has verified the data disclosed. This news release refers to properties other than those in which the Company has an interest. Mineralization on those other properties is not necessarily indicative of mineralization on the Company's properties. As drill hole LE18-01A was drilled steeply at -70 degrees and the mineralization is interpreted to be horizontal, the true thickness is expected to be approximately 90% of the cored intervals. Sample preparation and analyses were completed at SRC Geoanalytical Laboratories in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. Uranium assays at SRC are by Inductively Coupled Plasma – Optical Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-OES) and quality is controlled through the inclusion of internal duplicates, blanks and standards.
About IsoEnergy
IsoEnergy is a well-funded uranium exploration and development company with a portfolio of prospective projects in the eastern Athabasca Basin in Saskatchewan, Canada and a historical inferred mineral resource estimate at the Mountain Lake uranium deposit in Nunavut. IsoEnergy is led by a Board and Management team with a track record of success in uranium exploration, development and operations. The Company was founded and is supported by the team at its major shareholder, NexGen Energy Ltd.
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This news release shall not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of any offer to buy any securities, nor shall there be any sale of any securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful. The securities referenced herein have not been, nor will they be, registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act"), and such securities may not be offered or sold within the United States absent registration under the U.S. Securities Act or an applicable exemption from the registration requirements thereunder.
Forward-Looking Information
The information contained herein contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. "Forward-looking information" includes, but is not limited to, statements with respect to the activities, events or developments that the Company expects or anticipates will or may occur in the future, including, without limitation, planned exploration activities. Generally, but not always, forward-looking information and statements can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates", or "believes" or the negative connotation thereof or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "occur" or "be achieved" or the negative connotation thereof.
Such forward-looking information and statements are based on numerous assumptions, including among others, that the results of planned exploration activities are as anticipated, the price of uranium, the anticipated cost of planned exploration activities, general business and economic conditions will not change in a material adverse manner, that financing will be available if and when needed and on reasonable terms, that third party contractors, equipment and supplies and governmental and other approvals required to conduct the Company's planned exploration activities will be available on reasonable terms and in a timely manner. Although the assumptions made by the Company in providing forward-looking information or making forward-looking statements are considered reasonable by management at the time, there can be no assurance that such assumptions will prove to be accurate.
Forward-looking information and statements also involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties and other factors, which may cause actual events or results in future periods to differ materially from any projections of future events or results expressed or implied by such forward-looking information or statements, including, among others: negative operating cash flow and dependence on third party financing, uncertainty of additional financing, no known mineral reserves or resources, the limited operating history of the Company, the influence of a large shareholder, alternative sources of energy and uranium prices, aboriginal title and consultation issues, reliance on key management and other personnel, actual results of exploration activities being different than anticipated, changes in exploration programs based upon results, availability of third party contractors, availability of equipment and supplies, failure of equipment to operate as anticipated; accidents, effects of weather and other natural phenomena and other risks associated with the mineral exploration industry, environmental risks, changes in laws and regulations, community relations and delays in obtaining governmental or other approvals.
Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking information or implied by forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that forward-looking information and statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated, estimated or intended. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements or information. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or reissue forward-looking information as a result of new information or events except as required by applicable securities laws
SOURCE IsoEnergy Ltd.
Craig Parry, Chief Executive Officer, IsoEnergy Ltd., +1 778 379 3211, [email protected], www.isoenergy.ca; Investor Relations, Kin Communications, +1 604 684 6730, [email protected], www.isoenergy.ca
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