Uranium Resources, Inc. (Nasdaq:URRE)
(ASX:URI)
, an energy metals exploration and
development company, announced that it has acquired a third lithium
exploration project, through the staking of 9,270 acres of federal
placer mining claims within the Railroad Valley of central
Nevada. URI’s Railroad Valley Project is located
approximately 75 miles west of Ely, Nevada, and covers an area for
which company-led reconnaissance sediment sampling returned lithium
values as high as 366ppm.
Over the past year URI has expanded its energy
metals business by leveraging its existing business operations and
technical capabilities. Those efforts have resulted in the
acquisition of three lithium brine exploration projects -- Columbus
Basin, Sal Rica, and now Railroad Valley -- totaling over 36,730
acres of mineral claims and representing one of the largest lithium
brine exploration holdings in North America.
”Once again, URI has expanded its lithium
business to include another highly prospective basin in Nevada,”
said Chris Jones, President and CEO. “Now with three
exploration targets, we can get down to business and explore for
lithium. To that end, drills go to work on our Columbus Basin
Project in July, with results expected by fourth quarter.
This is an exciting time for URI and its investors.”
About the Railroad Valley
ProjectThe Railroad Valley Project is located
approximately 75 miles west of Ely, Nevada, and 100 miles east of
Tonopah, Nevada. URI staff identified the Railroad Valley
area as a potential lithium brine target in 2016, through
literature reviews and publicly available geologic data. The
area was then further investigated in 2016 and 2017 by URI staff,
with over 45 sediment and 12 surface brine and spring samples
collected within the basin. The results of this
reconnaissance scale sampling yielded promising concentrations of
lithium, including five sediment samples with lithium
concentrations over 300ppm, and a maximum concentration of
366ppm. Based on the results of the reconnaissance scale
sampling, coupled with geologic and hydrogeologic analysis of the
basin, URI staff identified the most prospective area for
acquisition through claim staking. The result was a 9,270
acre land position, controlled by URI through 467 federal placer
mining claims along the western boundary of the basin, and south of
Lockes Ponds.
In the Railroad Valley Project area, there
appears to be a convergence of several factors favorable for
lithium brine formation, including a deep, hydrologically closed
basin covered by an evaporative playa, and adjacent Tertiary age
felsic volcanic rocks of the Pancake Range that may be a source of
lithium in the system. Previous oil exploration in the basin,
adjacent to URI’s newly acquired land position, has penetrated
significant thicknesses of evaporitic and ash-fall sediments, and
has demonstrated the existence of a large geothermal anomaly
underlying the entire basin. The geothermal anomaly is
further evidenced by numerous hot springs on the west side of the
basin, and adjacent to the project area, indicative of convective
cycling within the local saline groundwater system. The numerous
identifiable mechanisms for the potential concentration of lithium
brines within the basin are highly promising, and create a
compelling exploration target worthy of further investigation.
URI will integrate the Railroad Valley Project
into the Company’s ongoing lithium exploration activities in Nevada
and Utah. Initial studies planned for the project include
additional surface sediment sampling, and acquisition of relevant
geophysical data generated from both historical and current oil
exploration within the basin for reinterpretation. Assuming
the identification of appropriate targets, drilling may commence on
the project before the end of 2017.
About Uranium Resources
(URI)
URI is focused on expanding its energy metals
strategy, which includes developing its lithium business while
maintaining optionality on the future rising uranium price.
The Company has developed a dominant land position in three
prospective lithium brine basins in Nevada and Utah in preparation
for exploration and potential development of any lithium resources
that may be discovered there. In addition, URI remains
focused on advancing the Temrezli in-situ recovery (ISR) uranium
project in Central Turkey when uranium prices permit economic
development of this project. URI controls extensive exploration
properties in Turkey under eight exploration and operating licenses
covering approximately 39,000 acres (over 16,000 ha) with numerous
exploration targets, including the potential satellite Sefaatli
Project, which is 30 miles (48 km) southwest of the Temrezli
Project. In Texas, the Company has two licensed and currently idled
uranium processing facilities and approximately 11,000 acres (4,400
ha) of prospective ISR uranium projects. In New Mexico, the Company
controls mineral rights encompassing approximately 186,000 acres
(75,300 ha) in the prolific Grants Mineral Belt, which is one of
the largest concentrations of sandstone-hosted uranium deposits in
the world. Incorporated in 1977, URI also owns an extensive
information database of historic drill hole logs, assay
certificates, maps and technical reports for uranium properties
located in the Western United States.
Cautionary Statement
This news release contains forward-looking
statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are subject to
risks, uncertainties and assumptions and are identified by words
such as “expects,” “estimates,” “projects,” “anticipates,”
“believes,” “could,” and other similar words. All statements
addressing events or developments that the Company expects or
anticipates will occur in the future, including but not limited to
statements relating to the timing of and potential results from
future drilling, the future financing of the Company, the Company’s
expected burn rate and developments at the Company’s projects are
forward-looking statements. Because they are forward-looking,
they should be evaluated in light of important risk factors and
uncertainties. These risk factors and uncertainties include,
but are not limited to, (a) the Company’s ability to raise
additional capital in the future; (b) spot price and long-term
contract price of uranium and lithium; (c) risks associated with
our foreign operations, (d) operating conditions at the Company’s
projects; (e) government and tribal regulation of the uranium
industry, the lithium industry, and the power industry; (f)
world-wide uranium and lithium supply and demand, including the
supply and demand for lithium-based batteries; (g) maintaining
sufficient financial assurance in the form of sufficiently
collateralized surety instruments; (h) unanticipated geological,
processing, regulatory and legal or other problems the Company may
encounter in the jurisdictions where the Company operates,
including in Texas, New Mexico, Utah, Nevada and Turkey; (i) the
ability of the Company to enter into and successfully close
acquisitions or other material transactions; (j) the results
of the Company’s lithium brine exploration activities at the
Railroad Valley, Columbus Basin and Sal Rica Projects, and (k)
other factors which are more fully described in the Company’s
Annual Report on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, and
other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Should
one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should
any of the Company’s underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual
results may vary materially from those currently anticipated. In
addition, undue reliance should not be placed on the Company’s
forward-looking statements. Except as required by law, the Company
disclaims any obligation to update or publicly announce any
revisions to any of the forward-looking statements contained in
this news release.
Competent Person’s
Statement
Technical information in this news release is
based on data reviewed by Matthew Hartmann, who is Director –
Technical Services of Uranium Resources, Inc. Mr. Hartmann is
a “Qualified Person” as defined by Canadian National Instrument
43-101, and a “Competent Person” as defined in the 2012 Edition of
the “Australasian Code for Reporting Exploration Results, Mineral
Resources and Ore Reserves” (JORC Code). He is a Licensed
Professional Geologist, and a Registered Member of the Society of
Mining, Metallurgy & Exploration (No. 4170350RM). Mr.
Hartmann has appropriate experience that is relevant to the
evaluation of the style and nature of mineral deposits relating to
this document. Mr. Hartmann consents to the inclusion in this
release of the matters based on their information in the form and
context in which they appear.
Uranium Resources Contacts
Christopher M. Jones, President and CEO
303.531.0472
Jeff Vigil, VP Finance and CFO
303.531.0473
Email: Info@uraniumresources.com
Website: www.uraniumresources.com
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