Athabasca – Additional Priority Uranium Targets

Power Metal Resources PLC

18 December 2023

 

18 December 2023

Power Metal Resources PLC

("Power Metal" or the "Company")

Athabasca Region - Additional Priority Uranium Targets

Magnetic Surveys Highlight Multiple Priority Targets at Cook Lake and Clearwater

Power Metal Resources PLC (AIM:POW), the London listed exploration company with a global project portfolio, announces key developments to its currently 100% owned uranium business, covering a combined 1,012 square kilometres ("km²") across 17 properties (collectively the "Uranium Portfolio") in and around the prolific Athabasca Basin in Saskatchewan, Canada. Results from the Unmanned Aerial Vehicle ("UAV") magnetic geophysics surveys covering the Clearwater and Cook Lake Projects are reported herein with multiple high-priority targets for future exploration generated from this modern surveying technique.

The 2023 uranium focussed exploration programme is the largest undertaken by the Company and covered 10 properties with a diverse range of modern exploration technologies applied to identify significant prospective uranium targets.

The results to date have been encouraging and prior to today's announcement, significant prospective uranium anomalies have been confirmed at four properties as detailed below:

Date of RNS	Property	Exploration Findings	Announcement Link
N/A	Kernaghan	To be disclosed ("TBD") - electromagnetic geophysics ("EM") survey complete	Results upcoming
N/A	Durrant Lake	TBD - EM survey complete	Results Upcoming
N/A	Reitenbach	TBD - airborne magnetic survey complete	Results Upcoming
N/A	E-12	TBD - UAV magnetic geophysics survey complete	Results Upcoming
18/12/23	Clearwater	Two new magnetic targets	Herein
18/12/23	Cook Lake	Two new magnetic targets	Herein
20/11/23	Soaring Bay	Geochemical results (soil & radon gas) expands on two known targets.	https://www.londonstockexchange.com/news-article/POW/exploration-update-significant-uranium-targets/16215573
20/11/23	Tait Hill	Geochemical results (soil & radon gas) highlights multiple highly prospective targets.	https://www.londonstockexchange.com/news-article/POW/exploration-update-significant-uranium-targets/16215573
26/09/23	Badger Lake	Hyperspectral analysis uncovers significant anomaly.	https://www.londonstockexchange.com/news-article/POW/badger-lake-uranium-project-update/16140722
08/09/23	Perch River	Significant helium anomaly discovered. Geochemical results pending.	https://www.londonstockexchange.com/news-article/POW/helium-anomaly-discovered-on-perch-river/16115743 Further Results Upcoming

Today, the Company announces that exploration conducted at a further two properties has also identified multiple significant uranium targets, further details of which are highlighted below.

The 2023 exploration programme continues with additional exploration findings awaited from Kernaghan, Durrant Lake, Reitenbach and E-12 properties.

Sean Wade, Chief Executive Officer of Power Metal Resources plc, commented: 

"We believe our 2023 Athabasca exploration programme has already added considerable value to our extensive Athabasca uranium focused properties.

At a time when the uranium price is entering a major bull market phase, and interest in junior explorers with attractive projects in the Athabasca Basin grows, we find ourselves in an enviable position.

We anticipated positive exploration findings, given the work undertaken by our team to carefully select properties for staking based on extensive historical exploration data and with a view to the application of the latest geological techniques. However, the scale of positive results has been, in our opinion, quite remarkable.

Further exploration results are pending, which will be factored into our ongoing work to crystallise value for shareholders, demonstrated recently by the progress we have made with the planned IPO of Teathers Financial Plc (to be renamed Uranium Energy Exploration) . We will also incorporate this work into the forward exploration plans for our retained Athabasca portfolio.

These are exciting times for the Company and my personal thanks are due to our technical team, contractors and consultants for the delivery of this continual stream of encouraging findings."

HIGHLIGHTS

Clearwater

·    The recent UAV magnetic geophysics survey, which was focussed on the northeastern portion of the Clearwater project, has identified the presence of multiple 1^st and 2^nd order magnetic lineament structures which are considered by the Company to be prospective for structurally related vein-type uranium mineralisation as typified in the Beaverlodge district deposits of northern Saskatchewan ("Beaverlodge Type" mineralisation).

·    The survey significantly expanded the size of a previously identified target (the 'Toots Lake Target') by approximately 800 metres ("m") as well as identifying a brand-new target area now termed the 'Nesbitt Fault Target'.

Cook Lake

·    This UAV survey represents the first magnetic survey ever completed over the Cook Lake project and successfully delineated two priority target areas which are associated with newly identified magnetic structural lineaments which are considered by the Company to be coincident with elevated Uranium (U)-in-lake sediment results, as well as historical radiometric anomalies.

FURTHER INFORMATION

Following receipt of the UAV magnetic survey data, Power Metal technical staff completed a detailed interpretation of the data, the results of which are presented below.

Clearwater Project ("Clearwater") - Geology & Previous Exploration

The Clearwater Project is considered by the Company to be prospective for Beaverlodge Type uranium deposits. Such deposits are typically associated with faults and shear structures that acted as conduits for uranium bearing hydrothermal fluids, and which focussed the deposition of the uranium mineralisation. These faults and the fluids that travelled along them, acted to alter the mineralogy of host rocks and thus changed the magnetic properties of the host geology.

Historical reports highlight the major faults across the Clearwater Project, but their precise location, and the geology associated with them was unknown. Prior fieldwork on the Clearwater Project by Power Metal Resources identified up to 1,112 parts per million ("ppm") triuranium octoxide (U₃O₈₎ in rock samples collected during surface prospecting. Whilst historical mine trials and workings were known, it was considered that uranium mineralisation was likely to be buried, and thus may leave minimal surface trace. Therefore, an understanding of a project's structural geology is essential to determining precise locations which may be prospective for significant accumulations of uranium mineralisation.

In September 2023, a UAV magnetic geophysics survey was carried in the northeastern part of the Clearwater project where the greatest density of historical uranium occurrences had been found. A total of 270.47 line-km were flown at Clearwater, on a 50m line spacing, at an elevation of 50m above the ground by Discovery International Geophysics Inc., of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

Clearwater Project - UAV Results

Toots Lake Target

The results of the UAV survey show the presence of multiple northeast-southwest oriented trending faults and fractures within granitic units in the northwest of the survey area; in addition, a significant magnetic low (potentially related to hydrothermal alteration) was identified. Coincident with this area, uranium mineralisation of up to 0.195% (1950ppm) U₃O₈ over 0.7m was intersected during limited historical drilling. This target has grown in size considerably (at least 800m along strike) with the identification from the 2023 survey of two prominent northeast-southwest oriented magnetic lineaments.

Nesbitt Fault Target

In the southeast part of the survey area, multiple northeast-southwest oriented significant faults were identified which are coincident with a similar gravity low to the Toots Lake Target. This newly identified target area has been subject to minimal historical exploration but it is 1km to the south of the Don Henry Uranium Mine, a historic (1955) trial mine that was centred on a uranium rich vein with a length of 150 feet ("ft") (45.7m) and a width of 1 to 3.5ft (0.3 to 1.1m). The limited historical work along the Nesbitt Fault has identified evidence of hydrothermal alteration, and grab samples of up to 0.13% U₃O₈ (1,300ppm) have been recorded from a 1970s exploration programme.

Cook Lake Project - Geology and Rationale

A significant challenge to fieldwork on and around the Cook Lake Project is the minimal outcrop - with historical exploration giving estimates of around 95% cover. Despite this cover, the property is host to 27 radiometric anomalies, four electromagnetic conductors and multiple elevated U-in-lake sediment results. The abundance of possible targets makes selecting priority areas to complete detailed fieldwork highly challenging.

Cook Lake is considered by Power Metal to be prospective for pegmatite-hosted uranium as well as intrusive related and basement hosted unconformity related uranium - the latter of which is often associated with major faults. As a result, Power Metal elected to complete a UAV magnetic survey across the project. A total of 119.18 line-km were flown at Cook Lake, on a 100m line spacing, at an elevation of 50m above the ground by Discovery International Geophysics Inc. of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

The 2023 UAV survey identified two significant new target areas termed the 'Central Target' and the 'Northern Target' which are further detailed below.

Cook Lake Project - UAV Results

Central Target

The Central Target is associated with a strong magnetic low extending over a strike length of four kilometres which is coincident with eight radiometric anomalies. This target is also coincident with an east-west trending electromagnetic ("EM") geophysical conductor further indicating the possibility of unconformity related uranium mineralisation within this target area.

Northern Target  

The Northern Target is associated with multiple moderate magnetic low features which are coincident with an airborne radiometric high anomaly (44 counts per second) and also coincident with a 7km long EM anomaly all coincident with the highest U-in-lake sediment anomaly on the project - at 25.6ppm U₃O₈.

The identification of these two targets for future fieldwork, neither of which have received significant attention in the past, will allow for efficient and targeted field campaigns on the Cook Lake uranium project going forward.

URANIUM PROPERTIES - HOLDING STRUCTURE

Power Metal has a 100% owned subsidiary Power Metal Canada Inc ("Power Canada"), which acts as the holding company for certain Canadian project operations. Power Canada has a wholly owned subsidiary, 102134984 Saskatchewan Ltd, which is the holder of the Company's Athabasca uranium portfolio.

QUALIFIED PERSON STATEMENT

The technical information contained in this disclosure has been read and approved by Mr Nick O'Reilly (MSc, DIC, MIMMM, MAusIMM, FGS), who is a qualified geologist and acts as the Qualified Person under the AIM Rules - Note for Mining and Oil & Gas Companies. Mr O'Reilly is a Principal consultant working for Mining Analyst Consulting Ltd which has been retained by Power Metal Resources PLC to provide technical support.

This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of the Market Abuse Regulation (EU) 596/2014 as it forms part of UK domestic law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 ("MAR"), and is disclosed in accordance with the Company's obligations under Article 17 of MAR.

For further information please visit https://www.powermetalresources.com/ or contact:

Power Metal Resources plc
Sean Wade (Chief Executive Officer)	[phone]
SP Angel Corporate Finance (Nomad and Joint Broker)
Ewan Leggat/Charlie Bouverat	[phone]
SI Capital Limited (Joint Broker)
Nick Emerson	[phone]
First Equity Limited (Joint Broker)
David Cockbill/Jason Robertson	[phone]

BlytheRay (PR Advisors)	[phone]
Tim Blythe
Megan Ray

NOTES TO EDITORS

Power Metal Resources plc - Background

Power Metal Resources plc (LON:POW) is an AIM listed metals exploration company which finances and manages global resource projects.

The Company has a principal focus on opportunities offering district scale potential across a global portfolio including precious, base and strategic metal exploration in North America, Africa and Australia.

Project interests range from early-stage greenfield exploration to later-stage prospects currently subject to drill programmes.

Power Metal will develop projects internally or through strategic joint ventures until a project becomes ready for disposal through outright sale or separate listing on a recognised stock exchange, thereby crystallising the value generated from our internal exploration and development work.

Value generated through disposals will be deployed internally to grow the Company or may be returned to shareholders through share buy backs, dividends or in-specie distributions of assets.

 

END