Perth, Mar 10, 2008 (ABN Newswire) - Crossland Uranium Mines Limited (ASX: "CUX") has acquired a Northern Territory uranium exploration licence area which has already yielded high grade assays from previous drilling.
Crossland believes the previously identified uranium mineralisation - sandwiched between the Company's existing Chilling prospect in the Pine Creek Orogen of the NT - has the potential to contain a modest uranium resource.
Uranium mineralisation was identified in previous drilling on Crossland's newly-acquired exploration licence area (Mount Thomas/March Fly EL24557) by explorers such as Mobil Energy Minerals Australia, and a joint venture between Total Mining Australia Pty Ltd and the Power Nuclear Corporation of Japan (PNC).
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Crossland has acquired EL24557 from Aldershot Resources Limited, an unrelated party. The terms of the acquisition remain confidential between the parties but are not material to Crossland.
The Mt Thomas EL covers 67 sq. km and is surrounded on three sides by Crossland's granted ELs at Chilling. The area was covered by Crossland's 2007 detailed airborne geophysical survey.
Crossland's Executive Director, Mr Geoff Eupene, said the best intersections in drilling so far on the Mt Thomas prospect have been in Total/PNC's 1988 and 1990 percussion drill holes.
"Crossland believes the March Fly / Mt Thomas prospect retains potential for a modest tonnage high grade uranium resource in graphitic shear zones within early Proterozoic sediments of the Pine Creek Orogen," Mr Eupene said.
"The mineralised zone shows reasonable continuity, and the mineralised intersections remain unclosed, most obviously above the intersections, where there are anomalous surface radiometric results.
"According to Total's 1990 Open File report (NTCR19910252), an altered and mineralised zone around 600m long has been indicated by their work.
"Crossland will re-evaluate the earlier work and expects to undertake detailed ground work including diamond core drilling during the 2008 dry season."
Mr Eupene said down-hole gamma logging from previous drilling (see table below) indicated that there were probably high grade intervals within some of these intersections.
"Details of sampling methodology provided in the available open file reports are insufficient to confirm procedures in the manner outlined in Table 1 of the 2004 Edition of the JORC Code, and it is questionable that the methodologies employed and results reported are of a standard sufficient for inclusion in an estimate of Mineral Resource," he said.
"Nonetheless Crossland's Competent Person assesses that they represent valid Exploration Results.
"Like the rest of the Chilling area, the EL area has received minimal systematic exploration for more substantial Unconformity Related Deposits (similar to those in the Alligator Rivers Region) that are Crossland's primary targets at Chilling.
"Evaluation of the Mount Thomas EL will commence as soon as seasonal conditions permit. A diamond drilling contractor has been engaged to commence work for Crossland in early June.
"Our operating base in Darwin, just 120km from the area, means that Crossland is in a strong position to intensively explore the Chilling Project."
The newly acquired EL also contains the previously- known Haywood Creek radiometric anomaly.
About the Chilling Project.
The Chilling Project is one of four Australian uranium exploration projects initiated by Crossland which are subject to a joint venture with Canadian company, Pancontinental Uranium Corporation (TSX-V:PUC). Pancon will sole-fund $8 million of exploration expenditure on these uranium exploration projects to earn 50% interest in Crossland's share of them.
The Chilling project is Crossland's flagship uranium project and now occupies 1363km2 of granted exploration title (1908km2 including applications) on the western margin of the Pine Creek Orogen.
The Pine Creek Orogen is the source of most of Australia's historic uranium production, from medium to high grade deposits at:
- Rum Jungle, 40 km to the north of the Chilling Project,
- the South Alligator Valley, and
- the Alligator Rivers District, on the eastern margin of the Pine Creek Orogen.
Following are XRF assays of percussion drill samples from EL24557 recovered from anomalous intervals determined radiometrically:
---------------------------------------------------------------------Hole GridE GridN Dip Azimuth From To Interval @ppmU3O8 (m) (m) (m) (m) *(m) (XRF)TOL_MF_P6 10015.8 9977.8 -60* 270* 52 54 2 11,670" and 59 61 2 1,700 TOL_MF_P7 10036.4 9881.9 -60* 260* 41 44 3 1,200" and 68 70 2 590TOL_P_69 10000 10023 -60* 301* 84 87 3 493" and 95 97 2 4,068TOL_P_71 10014 10037 -60* 280* 98 103 5 540---------------------------------------------------------------------*Averages of 1m samples with entry value of 100ppm and maximum includedwaste of 1m. Minimum width reported of 2m. Table includes all reported intervals that met these criteria. Based on prevailing geological interpretations, reported widths are close to true widths.----------------------------------------------------------------------
According to data in the authoritative 2000 Geoscience Australia publication, Australia's Uranium Resources, Geology and Development of Deposits, by A. McKay and Y Miezitis,Unconformity- Related Deposits of the Alligator Rivers District have produced, to end of 2000, 60,679T U, and have remaining Reserves and Resources of 257,500T U, (a total past production and Resources of 375,000T U3O8). These figures relate to the Jabiluka, Ranger, Koongarra and Nabarlek deposits that were discovered over a period of four years in the early 1970s. Crossland's holdings on the western margin of the Pine Creek Orogen as yet have no quantified resources, but are yet to receive a similar sustained exploration effort. While Crossland has commenced a sustained and systematic exploration effort, this will not necessarily lead to definition of a Mineral Resource at Chilling.
Geoff Eupene,
CEO & Exploration Director.
The results contained in this report are based on information compiled by Geoffrey S Eupene CP, a Fellow of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy. He is a director of the Company and a full time employee of Eupene Exploration Enterprises Pty Ltd. He has sufficient experience which is relevant to the style of mineralisation and types of deposits under consideration, and to the activity which he is undertaking to qualify as a Competent Person as defined in the December 2004 edition of the Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves (the JORC Code). Geoffrey S Eupene has consented to the inclusion in this report of the matters based on his information in the form and context in which it appears. Crossland's policy is that it will not report radiometric "equivalent concentrations" of radioactive elements, at least until the radiometric parameters have been established by careful calibration with chemical assays. All results reported above are based on chemical assays of element concentrations.
Crossland's Board and Management team includes Mr Eupene and Chairman, Bob Cleary - two experienced Australian uranium experts who have both been closely involved with the definition, development and operation of the Ranger Mine in the NT, Australia's largest uranium producing mine.
Mr David Mosher, a Director of JV partner, Pancon, led the exploration team that discovered the Jabiluka deposit, Australia's largest uranium ore body, about 20 km north of Ranger.
Contact
Geoff Eupene
Exec Director
Crossland Uranium Mines Ltd
Mob: +61-411-172-255
TEL: +61-8-8981-5911
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