Radon-in-soil surveys have firmed up Valor’s knowledge on its uranium targets at Hidden Bay. Pic via Getty Images.
Valor gets the jump on firming up uranium targets at Hidden Bay
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Valor has confirmed priority uranium targets at its Hidden Bay project in Canada’s Athabasca Basin after the successful completion of radon-in-soil surveys.
The surveys identified radon anomalies that are partly coincident with priority gravity targets which were identified by the June airborne gravity survey.
Valor Resources (ASX:VAL) noted that these targets are located close to the Athabasca unconformity and have the potential for both basement-hosted and Athabasca sandstone-hosted uranium deposits.
“The radon survey at Hidden Bay has provided us with further confidence in the targets outlined earlier this year and allowed us to prioritise the gravity targets for drilling,” executive chairman George Bauk said.
“The Hidden Bay area is dominated by thick glacial deposits, lakes and muskegs, meaning conventional surface geochemical sampling is ineffective, resulting in the use of radon in soil sampling.
“RadonEx’s expertise in interpreting the Radon data enables them to distinguish between transported surficial radioactivity and real bedrock-sourced radon diffusion trends.”
203Mlbs Rabbit Lake nearby
He added that the project is located just 20km south of the historical Rabbit Lake uranium project, which was the longest running uranium mine in North America with production of over 203Mlbs of uranium concentrate over 41 years.
Importantly, Hidden Bay has a similar geological setting to Rabbit Lake, which still has an Indicated Resource of 1.836Mt at 0.95% U3O8 despite being closed.
“There has been just one hole drilled in the last 35 years within the Hidden Bay claim area, highlighting the lack of modern exploration at this project and the broader region,” Bauk added.
“Modern exploration techniques, such as airborne gravity and radon surveys of this nature, were simply not available in previous exploration programs, opening up an exciting discovery opportunity for Valor.”
Radon survey
The Radon survey was carried out over five of the six gravity anomalies identified by the airborne gravity survey to detect radon gas formed from the decay of radium, a by-product of uranium decay.
While radium can concentrate along faults and fractures extending away from uranium mineralisation, contractor RadonEx’s expertise is in distinguishing between transported surficial radioactivity and real bedrock-sourced radon diffusion trends.
Valor plans to carry out follow-up field exploration and further radon surveys before drilling begins in 2023.
This article was developed in collaboration with Valor Resources, a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing.
This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.
