U3O8 Corp. Discovers New Style of Uranium-Vanadium at La Rosada, Laguna Salada District, Argentina

09:25 EST Wednesday, January 11, 2017 

TORONTO, Jan. 11, 2017 /CNW/ - U3O8 Corp. (TSX: UWE, OTCQB: UWEFF) ("U3O8 Corp." or the "Company") announces assays from a second type of uranium - vanadium mineralization that occurs in addition to the typical mineralized gravel at La Rosada, an area that lies within the larger Laguna Salada Project in Patagonia, Argentina.

"Our focus is squarely on reducing estimated production costs at the Laguna Salada Deposit," said Dr Richard Spencer, CEO of U3O8 Corp. "One way of achieving that goal is by delineating additional higher grade material - and our exploration team has risen to that challenge by finding high-grade uranium-vanadium in friable volcanic rocks – a type of mineralization that occurs in addition to the gravel-hosted mineralization typical of the Laguna Salada district. Trenching over the last couple of months has shown that uranium-vanadium in the volcanic rock constitutes a target in its own right, adding to the potential of the La Rosada target. Assay results from mineralized gravel at La Rosada will be released in the next few weeks."

Figure 1. Map showing the location of the La Rosada exploration area relative to the footprint of the Laguna Salada resource and the gravel plain in which the mineralization occurs (inset map). The main map shows the location of mineralized tuff (pale blue) and gravel (green).

Assay Results

Table 1. Summary assay results for composite panel samples from the walls of trenches excavated in rhyolitic tuff (volcanic rock) from the La Rosada area. Results from tuff from a prior press release made on November 12, 2013, before the significance of this mineralization was appreciated, are included (shaded grey) for completeness.

Target Area	Sample No	From (m)	To (m)	True Thickness (m)	Assay Data
U 3 O 8 (ppm)	V 2 O 5 (ppm)
PALA	16876	0.2	1.1	0.9	3,927	1,340
16878	0.5	1.5	1.0	2,331	872
16884	0.3	1.1	0.8	3,125	1,047
Average grade of mineralized zone at La Pala	0.9	3,128	1,086
16881	0.3	1.0	0.7	66	103
16875	0.2	1.0	0.8	106	141
16887	0.7	2.5	1.8	40	84
16936	0.4	1.1	0.7	76	107
16938	0.4	2.1	1.7	76	338
12 ZONE	16854	0.3	1.3	1.0	8,927	3,008
16864	0.7	1.4	0.7	935	571
16867	0.2	1.2	1.0	2,706	1,015
16870	0.9	1.9	1.0	3,051	1,289
16895	0.4	1.4	1.0	405	253
16899	0.4	1.7	1.3	1,172	333
16902	0.4	1.2	0.8	459	265
Average grade of mineralized area at 12 Zone	1.0	2,522	962
16856	1.2	2.2	1.0	243	290
16860	1.5	2.5	1.0	66	201
16862	0.8	1.3	0.5	39	299
16904	0.5	1.2	0.7	209	384
21127	0.4	1.0	0.6	97	289
21139	0.3	0.7	0.4	199	278
23012	0.4	1.0	0.6	200	444
PESCADO NORTE	21131	0	0.6	0.6	913	377
21134	0	0.9	0.9	861	439
8780	0.5	0.9	0.4	1,730	623
8784	0.1	0.8	0.7	1,956	890
8772	0.2	0.3	0.1	7,933	2,644
Average grade of mineralized zone at Pescado Norte	0.5	2,679	995
16906	0.3	1.1	0.8	109	105
16908	0.3	1.1	0.8	215	246
8778	0.1	0.3	0.2	173	96
8787	0.2	0.5	0.3	157	162

 

Mineralized Zones

Uranium-vanadium is exposed in rhyolitic tuff where the overlying gravel has been eroded at La Rosada. The three zones of mineralization identified to date have a high proportion of carbonate where the tuff has been altered and weathered to form a soft, friable layer that starts anywhere from surface to a depth of 1.5 metres.  

The average thickness of mineralization in the La Pala zone is 0.9 metres with an average grade of 3,128ppm (0.31%) U3O8, with grades ranging between 0.23% and 0.39% U3O8 (Table 1).  Mineralization in the 12 Zone averages one metre thick with an average grade of 2,522ppm (0.25%) with a grade range of 0.04% to 0.9% U3O8. The layer of mineralization at Pescado Norte is thinner, averaging 0.5 metres with an average grade of 2,679ppm (0.27%) and a grade range of 0.09% to 0.79% U3O8.  Vanadium grades are relatively constant at 0.1% V2O5 across the three areas of mineralized tuff.  

The mineralization encountered to date shows lateral continuity over a combined area of approximately 0.4 square kilometres. 

Mineralization in the tuff at Pescado Norte lies in a northeast-trending zone that is aligned with, and may form the extension of, a mineralized channel in the adjacent gravel. The alignment raises the question as to whether there is a link between mineralization in the volcanic rocks and the adjacent gravel.  

There is a possibility that the horizontal mineralized layer in the tuff derives from feeder structures deeper in the tuff – a possibility that will be investigated by drilling as available exploration funding permits.

Beneficiation

Beneficiation characteristics of the gravel at Laguna Salada are good, resulting in concentration of 82% of the gravel's uranium into fine-grained material that constitutes just 9% of the gravel's original weight1, because the barren pebbles and coarse sand can be so easily removed by sieving.  Beneficiation of the tuff, which does not contain pebbles, is likely to be less efficient at concentrating the mineralization; however, this assumption will be confirmed with test work in due course.

Estimated Cash Cost of Production at Laguna Salada (from the PEA)

Since the mineralization at Laguna Salada is contained within a flat sheet lying within three metres of surface, mining could commence at any chosen location. The Preliminary Economic Assessment "PEA") modeled mining of the richest areas of the Laguna Salada Deposit followed by successively lower-grade areas so that the capital cost of the Project could be paid off as quickly as possible.  Using the data available at the time of the PEA, this approach resulted in an estimated cash cost of production of US$11.62 per pound of uranium in year one, rising to average US$21.62 per pound over the life of the mine modeled in the PEA (Figure 2).