Valor Resources Ltd (ASX:VAL) has fielded high-grade rock chip results of up to 7.98% uranium described as "outstanding" at its Surprise Creek Project in Canada’s Beaverlodge Uranium District.
The surface sampling assay results have confirmed a priority drill target extending over 500 metres in strike length.
Valor's field program has returned six surface samples above 1% uranium with associated copper, including:
- 7.98% uranium and 0.67% copper;
- 6.83% uranium and 0.17% copper; and
- 3.35% uranium and 0.04% copper.
Notably, geological mapping has confirmed the proximity of uranium mineralisation to an unconformity and a spatial association with the north-south trending Surprise Creek Fault, highlighting strong geological similarities with significant uranium deposits in the Beaverlodge Uranium District such as Fay-Ace and Gunna.
Moving forward, drill testing of the Surprise Creek Fault target is planned for 2023 along with airborne radiometrics and magnetics across the entire project area.
“Significant surface uranium”
Valor executive chairman George Bauk said: “These results confirm the extent of significant surface uranium mineralisation at Surprise Creek Fault and provide further confidence in the drill target.
“The known deposits in this part of the Beaverlodge district produced about 57 million pounds of uranium historically, highlighting the potential of this area to yield very significant uranium deposits.
“Prior to drilling, we plan to complete detailed airborne radiometrics and magnetics across the entire Surprise Creek Project area to identify other potential uranium targets as well as enhance our structural geological understanding to assist with drill planning.
“We have also recently expanded our landholding to the west which covers a large area of widespread historical copper occurrences that have attracted minimal exploration in the last 40 years.
“We plan to follow up the known copper occurrences on-ground in 2023 once we have completed a detailed historical data compilation and review”
Field program
A total of 50 rock chip samples were collected as part of the program, of which 28 samples were collected from the Surprise Creek Fault prospect.
The area of surface uranium mineralisation has been extended to a strike length of around 500 metres at the Surprise Creek Fault target, based on results received from the follow-up field program completed in October.
Samples were also taken from a widespread area of copper mineralisation discovered to the west, following up on copper mineralisation first identified in the July field program, with several samples returning assays of between 0.4% copper and 1% copper.
Furthermore, Valor is targeting structurally controlled vein-type uranium deposits at Surprise Creek, a sub-type of the basement-hosted unconformity-related uranium deposits.
Surprise Creek target
The Surprise Creek Fault is a north-northwest trending fault zone within orthogneisses and mylonite with widespread interpreted albitisation.
Uranium mineralisation was predominantly found within northeast-southwest and east-west trending carbonate-hematite veins and hematitic breccias, with chlorite alteration and is variably associated with copper (visible malachite) +/- lead mineralisation.
The higher-grade uranium mineralisation occurs around the intersection of the Surprise Creek Fault and a north-northeast trending mylonitic zone.
Geological mapping has identified outcropping younger Martin Group red beds (sandstones) which occur unconformably and/or in faulted contact with the older basement orthogneisses.
Significantly, uranium mineralisation has been found in the Martin Group sandstones and is close to the unconformity with the older underlying basement rocks.
This mineralisation and the geological setting suggest the Surprise Creek Fault prospect shares many similarities with two of the most significant Beaverlodge Uranium District deposits, Fay-Ace and Gunnar, which are around 25 kilometres southeast and 30 kilometres south of Surprise Creek respectively.
Forward plan
Valor intends to submit drill permit applications for the Surprise Creek Fault area over the northern winter, with the intention of undertaking a drill program in the June quarter of 2023.
In addition, the company intends to complete a detailed airborne magnetics and radiometrics survey in 2023 over the entire Surprise Creek Project area, including the recently acquired areas, to help understand the geological controls on the widespread copper mineralisation.
In January, Valor plans to compile historical data from new claims to the west of Surprise Creek covering Ellis Bay, Bob Lake and Waterloo copper occurrences.