In the remote stretches of northern Saskatchewan’s Athabasca Basin, Atco Mining Inc. (ATCM.C) and Standard Uranium (STND.V) have completed their inaugural drilling program at the Atlantic Project, a 3,061-hectare area promising in uranium potential.
The project, which Standard is doing the work on and holds the option on, while Atco raises dough to pay for their part of an earn-in, has shown exciting initial results, signaling a potentially lucrative microcap joint venture for investors tuned to the energy sector’s raw materials.
The exploration work conducted at The Atlantic Project, in a region famous for uranium deposits, has intersected notable levels of radioactivity across all drilled segments. This includes discoveries of anomalous radioactivity at levels as high as 300 counts per second in each of the five drilled holes.
For the non-technical folk out there, these are NOTABLE results.
The area’s geological framework supports these findings and drilling has revealed multiple zones where the uranium appears concentrated along certain structural zones and alterations in the rock, including areas with dravite-rich clays. This suggests not only the presence of uranium but also conditions favorable for its concentration and extraction.
In short:
- BROADLY: The neighbouring region is uranium rich
- LESS BROADLY: The geology points to this spot having not just uranium but uranium in concentrated enough areas that could make mining economically feasible
- NOT AT ALL BROADLY: The drill results are showing what the geology suggested they might
The project benefits from a previously unexplored electromagnetic corridor on its western block, where the latest drills have uncovered extensive structural disruptions and potential hydrothermal inputs of uranium. These are promising signs that there could be more uranium to find, enhancing the project’s appeal to investors.
Adding to the optimism, the project was completed ahead of schedule and under budget.
This efficiency in initial explorations could bode well for the project’s future phases, which aim to further investigate untested areas of the site.
Neil McCallum, director of both Atco Mining and Standard Uranium, expressed confidence in the project’s progress, stating, “We’re setting the stage for more success on the project.” This sentiment was echoed by Sean Hillacre, Standard Uranium’s VP of Exploration, who highlighted the significant structural framework uncovered that provides ideal conditions for high-grade uranium mineralization.
As the team prepares for the next steps, including phase II and III drilling, the project holds significant potential for discovery. The additional geophysical surveys planned over the central claim blocks will help refine target areas, potentially leading to new uranium finds.
If you’re a resource pointy head and want specific technical information, I got you – and if that stuff makes your eyes roll into the back of your head, scan down page to the title ULTIMATELY and save yourself the grief.
- Inaugural success: Anomalous radioactivity (greater than 300 counts per second (cps)) was intersected in all five of the company’s inaugural drill holes at the Atlantic project, coinciding with prospective structural zones and favourable alteration, including dravite-rich clays.
- Sandstone and basement-hosted radioactivity: Multiple zones of elevated radioactivity linked to the sub-Athabasca unconformity and basement structural zones were intersected, indicating a uranium-fertile system.
- Verified targets: Massive structural disruption confirmed in the sandstone column and multiple wide (greater than 10 metres) brittle-reactivated graphitic shear zones confirm the main interpreted electromagnetic (EM) corridor on the western claim block which was not reached by previous operators. The inaugural program results have confirmed the company’s exploration thesis on the project, highlighting a uranium-fertile system with several kilometres of still untested strike length across the project.
- Hydrothermal uranium input: uranium: thorium (U: Th) ratios greater than 3:1 measured with the hand-held RS-125 Super-Spec suggest hydrothermal uranium input focused along structures.
- On time and under budget: Completion of 3,316 metres within five drill holes, surpassing metreage expectations both on time and under budget.
- Follow-up targets and next steps: Atlantic holds significant upside for discovery along the untested portions of the east-west conductor system. Supplementary geophysical surveys over the central claim blocks will provide further target areas for phase 2 and 3 drilling, along with the additional untested gravity low anomalies on the western block identified in 2022.
ULTIMATELY:
I’ve been telling you for months that Standard’s team are drill ninjas, that their team understands the land, and that they’ve got their education the hard way – be living and dying on drill results on previous projects. Standard has a LOT more land to play with and they’re active on multiple fronts, which means newsflow. Their $14 million market cap is absurdly inexpensive for who they are and what they have.
Atco is raising some money right now at a $2 million market cap, hitching itself to this crew and this project in a meaningful way that could earn them as much as 75% of the deal over time. They too are ridiculously cheap, especially with their super low costs, super low cap, and running with the Uranium Superfriends.
And beyond all of that, uranium demand isn’t falling, and a lot of investors are still rolling into this space.
Watchlist both of them, allocate your couch change appropriately, and let the drill do its work.
— Chris Parry
FULL DISCLOSURE: Both of these companies are Equity.Guru clients, and we own stock in both, having bought into financings and the open market.