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NEL currently have a JORC resource of around 9000t of U308 at 0.06% (600ppm or 0.6kg/t). They are doing a feasibility study on the Centipede/Lake Way projects using GRD Minproc engineers- GRD did the engineering for Langer Heinrich (PDN). They are currently doing a resource definition drilling programme to upgrade the status of the JORC resources from inferred and indicated to the higher levels of confidence. Some gaps in the previous drilling will be filled in and they plan to test for extensions of the resources around the margins. A large block of drilling data was missing from one area, so this will also be tested.
The project is made up of two resources seperated by about 20km across Lake Way. They are both around 4500t in size. In 1980 (the last time any serious work was done on these deposits) the plan was to mine them using a causeway across the lake, trucking to one mill. NEL plan to use one of AGC's old open pits as tailings storage (Agincourt own 57% of NEL's shares, in escrow at the moment. The NEL shares account for 30% of AGC's market cap at current prices). Mining will be open-cut. Test mining was done in 1980 at the northernmost deposit (named "Lake Way") but Centipede (next to the honeymoon nickel deposit) is less advanced. Both deposits had metallurgical testwork done on them and planned to use alkaline leach, the same as used at Langer Heinrich. This is proven technology (LH was not the first uranium mine to use this process). It seems likely that the drilling programme will lead to an increase in both confidence level and tonnage of the resource, perhaps 10-20% increase in U308 tonnes I'd guess, but not a doubling or anything as exciting as that IMHO. That's because these deposits are flat-lying and shallow, around 5m below the surface. They were pretty well-drilled in the 70's and 80's so it doesn't seem likely that large extensions were left undiscovered. Of course speaking as a NEL shareholder, I'd be happy to be proved wrong on this point!
NEL were also recently granted 3 exploration licenses in Namibia, one of them is 12km downstream from Langer Heinrich. NEL plan to test for buried LH-type targets. LH was discovered by a prospector in a light plane with a geiger counter on the floor of the plane. A non-outcropping deposit would not have been found using this technique (at LH, carnotite can be seen by eye at surface). They have also commenced fieldwork in Guinea, West Africa in Nov 2006. Historical work in Guinea in the 1970's showed uranium up to 0.5% U308 (5kg/t) and 7.5m thick.
The project is made up of two resources seperated by about 20km across Lake Way. They are both around 4500t in size. In 1980 (the last time any serious work was done on these deposits) the plan was to mine them using a causeway across the lake, trucking to one mill. NEL plan to use one of AGC's old open pits as tailings storage (Agincourt own 57% of NEL's shares, in escrow at the moment. The NEL shares account for 30% of AGC's market cap at current prices). Mining will be open-cut. Test mining was done in 1980 at the northernmost deposit (named "Lake Way") but Centipede (next to the honeymoon nickel deposit) is less advanced. Both deposits had metallurgical testwork done on them and planned to use alkaline leach, the same as used at Langer Heinrich. This is proven technology (LH was not the first uranium mine to use this process). It seems likely that the drilling programme will lead to an increase in both confidence level and tonnage of the resource, perhaps 10-20% increase in U308 tonnes I'd guess, but not a doubling or anything as exciting as that IMHO. That's because these deposits are flat-lying and shallow, around 5m below the surface. They were pretty well-drilled in the 70's and 80's so it doesn't seem likely that large extensions were left undiscovered. Of course speaking as a NEL shareholder, I'd be happy to be proved wrong on this point!
NEL were also recently granted 3 exploration licenses in Namibia, one of them is 12km downstream from Langer Heinrich. NEL plan to test for buried LH-type targets. LH was discovered by a prospector in a light plane with a geiger counter on the floor of the plane. A non-outcropping deposit would not have been found using this technique (at LH, carnotite can be seen by eye at surface). They have also commenced fieldwork in Guinea, West Africa in Nov 2006. Historical work in Guinea in the 1970's showed uranium up to 0.5% U308 (5kg/t) and 7.5m thick.
