CanAlaska Uranium Ltd. (TSXV: CVV) has announced a significant uranium discovery at the Pike Zone within their West McArthur Joint Venture project in the eastern Athabasca Basin. The company reported that drillhole WMA082-7 intersected 21.6 metres of uranium mineralization with an average grade of 3.44% eU3O8, including a remarkable 5.4 metres at 10.90% eU3O8.
This latest discovery is part of CanAlaska’s ongoing summer exploration program, aimed at delineating and expanding the high-grade uranium deposits at the Pike Zone. WMA082-7 is the first drillhole completed in this summer program, building on the high-grade intersections previously reported in WMA082-6 (14.9% U3O8 over 9.6 metres) and WMA082-4 (9.9% U3O8 over 14.5 metres).
“The continuation of ultra high-grade uranium mineralization at the unconformity and over significant width in the first drillhole of the summer program is a very encouraging indication that the Pike Zone discovery will incrementally grow as drilling continues through the summer,” said Cory Belyk, CEO of CanAlaska. “The CanAlaska team has been working methodically to understand and evaluate the current drill section. Drilling on adjacent sections will be designed to start defining the potential footprint of the known high-grade mineralization.”
Following the news, the company’s shares jump by as much as 9% after opening bell.
The West McArthur project is a joint venture with Cameco Corporation, with CanAlaska holding an 83.35% ownership and operating the project. CanAlaska is fully funding the 2024 program, which includes approximately 9,000 metres of drilling planned to target 10 to 14 unconformity intersections. The exploration is utilizing downhole mud-motor deviation technology to increase drilling efficiency and precision.
The geological details from WMA082-7 indicate a complex mineralization structure. The main interval of high-grade uranium at the unconformity is associated with massive to semi-massive, clay-hosted mineralization, exhibiting yellow and orange uranium secondaries and hematite alteration. This mineralization extends into the basement rocks, characterized by nodular, disseminated, and fracture-controlled veins of uranium.
The lower sandstone column of WMA082-7 shows significant alteration, including bleaching, limonite and clay alteration, and multiple fault zones with clay-filled breccias. The basement rocks also display strong clay and chlorite alteration with multiple re-activated fault zones.
“The ultra high-grade unconformity target at the Pike Zone remains open in all directions,” added Belyk. “Subsequent drill tests will continue to evaluate the extents of this high-grade mineralization along the current drill fence and to the east and west along strike.”
The summer exploration program, expected to conclude in September, will also test potential extensions of the Pike Zone along the C10 corridor, which hosts CanAlaska’s 42 Zone discovery and Cameco’s Fox Lake uranium deposit. The 15-kilometre-long C10S corridor remains sparsely tested, presenting significant potential for additional high-grade discoveries.
CanAlaska Uranium last traded at $0.58 on the TSX Venture.
Information for this story was found via Sedar and the sources mentioned. The author has no securities or affiliations related to the organizations discussed. Not a recommendation to buy or sell. Always do additional research and consult a professional before purchasing a security. The author holds no licenses.
