Titan Uranium Inc (TSX-V:TUE, FSE:T4X) has announced a significant increase to the Mineral Resources at the company's 100 percent owned Sheep Mountain uranium project in Fremont County, Wyoming.
The new estimate of Indicated Mineral Resources totals approximately 30.4 million lbs eU3O8 (13,841,000 tons averaging 0.110% eU3O8). This represents an increase of 14.4 million lbs, a 90.0% increase from the mineral resources previously reported on March 4, 2010.
Most of the additional resources reported here are directly adjacent to the planned Congo open pit and will be available for open pit mining. A review of economics of these resources will be incorporated into an updated Preliminary Feasibility Study to be completed in the 2nd half of 2011.
Chris M. Healey, President and CEO for Titan, commented "The on-going evaluation of the Sheep Mountain property continues to add to the economic viability of the project. This evaluation will include a substantial drill program in the summer of 2011 to further delineate the limits of the Congo pit, and also to explore for additional resource expansions."
The reported resource conforms to the Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Properties as stated in National Instrument 43-101. The estimate was completed by BRS Inc., of Riverton Wyoming. Doug Beahm P.E, P.G., president of BRS, is the independent qualified person responsible for this estimate, and will be the lead author of a technical report which will be filed on SEDAR within 45 days of the date of this release.
The new additions to the resource base are located immediately adjacent to the areas of Mineral Resources previously disclosed. All the reported resources are located within the existing Mine Permit. Permitting and licensing for the planned open pit/underground mines and heap leach operation are well underway.
The new estimates are based partially on the results of a 62-hole drill program (20,120 ft) completed in the area of the Congo Pit in the summer of 2010, and partially on a re-evaluation of old drill data from adjacent areas. There has been no change to the previously reported resource for Sheep 1 and 2, and a minor change to that reported for the Congo Pit. Three new mineralized areas have been added to the resource, being the Sun-Mc, North Gap and South Congo zones.
As with the previously reported Mineral Resource (see Titan release dated March 4, 2010, this estimate was made at three GT cut-offs for the Sheep 1 and 2 underground portion of the deposit: 0.30, 0.60 and 0.90 ft% eU3O8. For the Congo Pit, Sun-Mc, North Gap and South Congo zones the three cut-offs were 0.10, 0.25 and 0.50 ft% eU3O8. The mid-range cut-offs were used as Titan's base case for the previous resource report. In all cases a minimum grade of 0.03% eU3O8 was applied.
Subsequent to the reporting of the Mineral Resource in March 2010, Titan completed a Preliminary Feasibility Study (April 12, 2010), which showed that substantially lower cut-offs met economic criteria for inclusion in a Mineral Reserve estimation (0.10 ft% and 0.45 ft% respectively for open pit and underground). In addition, there have been substantial increases in the spot market price for uranium since the reporting of that Mineral Reserve (Ux weekly spot price April 5, 2010 $41.75, January 17, 2011 $68.00). Therefore the low-range cut-offs of 0.30 ft% and 0.10 ft% eU3O8 have been applied to the underground and open pit portions respectively to establish a base case for the new mineral resource estimate. Of the 8,948,000 lb increase in the Indicated Resource, 8,940,000 lbs (62.3%) are attributable to the inclusion of new zones, while 5,428,000 lbs (37.7%) are attributable to the use of lower cut-offs.
Titan believes that this approach is both realistic and is in accordance with current acceptable industry practice.
In the underground portion of the deposit, mineralized intercepts were diluted to a minimum 6 feet thickness (vertical) for compatibility with planned mining methods. For the open pit, the diluted thickness was 2 feet. Current mine design and methodologies incorporate conventional approaches that were employed successfully at this site in the past and are compatible with the current State of Wyoming mine permit.
This estimate was completed using the GT (grade x thickness) contour method on individual mineralized zones as defined in a full 3D geological model of the deposit. A total of 16 separate mineralized zones have been identified and evaluated in the Sheep 1 and 2 underground areas, as well as 17 zones in the Congo Pit area. For the Sun-Mc area, 12 individual mineralized zones were identified, for the North Gap - 5 zones, and for the South Congo - 10 zones.
The database for the estimate included 1577 rotary drill holes in the area of the proposed Congo pit, 485 in the area of the Sheep I and II underground mine, 704 in the Sun-Mc zone, 1060 in the North Gap zone and 117 in the South Congo all drilled from surface. Underground mine development and production records from previous mine workings, as well as records of underground mapping and sampling were also applied to the estimate.
The uranium quantities and grades are reported as equivalent U3O8 (eU3O8), as measured by downhole gamma logging. This industry standard protocol for reporting uranium in sandstone hosted deposits in the USA has been validated for the Sheep Mountain project by test drilling at the deposit, as well as by correlation with previous mining activities. In the fall of 2009, five rotary percussion holes were drilled on the property to study disequilibrium. Downhole logging of the drill holes was completed using standard gamma technology as well as a uranium spectral analysis tool (USAT), both supplied by Century Wireline of Tulsa OK. The USAT tool gives a direct measurement of uranium content and therefore allows determination of the equilibrium state of the uranium mineralization intersected in the hole. A total of 34 intervals were measured, which show an overall moderate positive disequilibrium (thus the true chemical grade of the mineralization is slightly higher than the equivalent grade determined by the gamma tool). The results of the resource estimates were not adjusted to account for this positive disequilibrium, and can therefore be considered conservative.
Chris M. Healey, a Professional Geologist licensed in the State of Wyoming, President and CEO for Titan, is the Qualified Person responsible for the technical content of this release.
Source: Titan Uranium Inc.