Over the past few years, during which the uranium market has been depressed, Defense Metals Corp. (DEFN:TSX.V; DFMTF:OTCQB; 35D:FSE) focused on advancing the rare earth elements project, Wicheeda. However, now that uranium spot prices are at multiyear highs, the Vancouver-based explorer decided to investigate whether its two uranium projects are worth advancing to create more value for shareholders.
"Together, the two projects encompass five mineral claims over 9,363 hectares."
These two projects are Geiger North and Klaproth, which Defense Metals acquired in 2018. Geiger North consists of three pieces of land totaling 1,233 hectares (1,233 ha) and Klaproth, two properties spanning 8,130 ha. Together, the two projects encompass five mineral claims over 9,363 ha.
The location of the projects is advantageous and strategic, as they are in the prolific northeast Athabasca Basin in Saskatchewan, Canada, next to the Wollaston-Mudjatik transition zone, a structure tied to most of the area's major uranium deposits.
Also, Geiger North and Klaproth are strategically interspersed among projects of major miners, including Iso Energy Ltd., Cameco Corp., Orano Canada Inc., Denison Mines Corp., and Purepoint Uranium Group Inc. Only 35 kilometers (35 km) away is the McClean Lake mill.
The next step for Defense Metals and its two Athabasca projects is to review all of the existing data on them. Those will encompass information from previously completed exploration work, including diamond drilling, geochemical surveys, and magnetic and electromagnetic geophysical surveys, both ground and airborne.
Once that is done, the company should then be able to choose whether or not to re-commence exploration efforts at Geiger North, subject to a 2% net smelter returns royalty, and/or Klaproth. Were it to decide to proceed, the work likely would include airborne electromagnetic geophysical surveys "to identify prospective basement conductive anomalies," as noted in a news release.
Timing plays a role, not only in terms of the strength of the uranium market, but also because Geiger North's claims are valid only through summer-fall 2022, Klaproth's through early 2023.
Meanwhile, Defense Metals continues moving forward on the Wicheeda rare earths deposit, on which it has an option to earn a 100% stake. To date, at this British Columbia project, the junior explorer has proven up a mineral resource comprising 4,890,000 tons (4,890 Mt) averaging 3.02% light rare earth elements (LREEs) of Indicated resources and 12.1 Mt LREEs averaging 2.90% of Inferred resources.
Also, the company had metallurgical testing done at Wicheeda that resulted in 90% extraction of rare earth elements and 85% recovery of a high-grade LREO concentrate.
Along with Wicheeda, Defense Metals has the option to acquire 100% of another mining asset, the Lac Burge gold property, about 215 km northeast of Val d'Or, Quebec.
Defense Metals was founded in October 2016 as First Legacy Mining Corp. The name was changed to Defense Metals Corp. about two years later, in December 2018.
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