Oct 8 2013
FISSION URANIUM CORP. ("Fission" or "the Company") the Operator, and its Joint Venture partner Azincourt Uranium are pleased to announce initial results of the recently acquired VTEM max airborne geophysical survey at their Patterson Lake North property ("PLN") in the Athabasca Basin.
A newly interpreted north-south trending package of conductive basement rocks has been identified in the northern portion of the property. Immediate ground geophysical MT survey follow up work has already commenced.
The follow up MT survey is designed to better locate the basement conductor axis using Internal Field Gradient Magneto-Tellurics (MT). This is important because structurally controlled high grade uranium deposits in the Athabasca Basin are generally associated within or proximal to such trends. For example, the UEX-Areva Shea Creek high-grade uranium deposit, located approximately 27 km to the north, is associated with the dominantly north-south trending Saskatoon Lake EM conductor. Similarly the PLS uranium occurrences are associated proximal to the east-northeast PL-3B EM conductor. The MT survey is being carried out by EMpulse Geophysics Inc. from 100m spaced stations along a 5km test line.
Ross McElroy, President, COO, and Chief Geologist for Fission, commented,
"The survey has delivered strong results on a previously unidentified north-south orientation and we have arranged for immediate follow up. The data will be key as we prioritize our drill targets for the upcoming winter drill program at PLN."
Radon sampling of water and lake bottom sediments is now being considered for lakes located proximal to basement conductors in the southern PLN project area. These techniques, used by Fission at PLS, proved highly successful for prioritizing drill targets leading to discovery.
Key Survey Information
The VTEM (versatile time-domain electromagnetic) max survey consisted of a helicopter-borne 400m line-spaced survey totaling 303 line-km in the northern half of PLN. It was conducted by Aeroquest Airborne of Aurora, Ontario in August (see Fission news release August 20, 2013). Immediate ground follow up over the new north-south trending conductive basement rocks was recommended following preliminary processing and interpretation of the data by Living Sky Geophysics Inc. of Saskatoon.
In addition, other on-going work has focused on re-analyzing historic drill core on the property. Dr. Paul Ramaekers has recently completed drill core re-logging and Athabasca stratigraphic outcrop sampling and prospecting field work at PLN. A total of 56 soil and 16 outcrop samples were collected from the project and available historical diamond drill core from the project was re-logged. Dr Ramaekers remains one of the foremost geological authorities on the Athabasca Basin and his involvement and the results of his work will serve to increase the project team's understanding of the local and regional Athabasca stratigraphy and will assist in standardizing sandstone logging procedures and interpretation.
PLN Project Plans
A drill program consisting of approximately 2,500-3,000m (8-10 drill holes) is planned for winter 2014. Work up until that point will continue to focus on identifying and prioritizing additional targets. Plans are currently underway to complete small moving loop Time Domain Electromagnetic (SMLTEM) ground geophysical surveys in the central PLN project area targeting interpreted structural offsets in the unconformity coincident with a NW-trending basement conductor, also identified from the VTEM Max survey, and with low magnetic metasedimentary basement, and in the southern PLN project area targeting the interpreted extension of the Carter Corridor: a conductive, low magnetic trend sub-parallel to the PLS discovery trend.
Fission is the operator for the PLN project and work will be completed using its existing technical and operational teams as well as contractors and infrastructure.
The total budget for the target generation and winter drill programs planned at PLN has been set at $1.5 million, with approximately $1 million to be spent on the winter drill program.
PLN is immediately adjacent to Fission's joint venture PLS property (Fission 50% / Alpha 50%) and 5.7km north of where Fission has discovered high-grade uranium mineralization in bedrock in four separate pods. Prior to Azincourt's earn-in, Fission spent $4.7 million, principally on airborne and ground geophysics with some diamond drilling.
High grade uranium occurrences in the Athabasca Basin generally occur within metasedimentary basement terrains with metapelitic lithologies and are associated with reactivated structural traps with hydrothermal alteration. These lithological-structural corridors can be prospective for hosting high grade uranium deposits. Modern geophysical surveys are capable of distinguishing and identifying lithology, structural features and alteration zones. Proper interpretation of these survey results can be used to effectively target drill holes.
PLN Property Setting
PLN lies within a large basin scale north-east NE trending gravity low structural corridor coincident with the Clearwater Domain (granite and felsic gneisses) that also incorporates the adjacent PLS property. The former Cluff Lake uranium mine and the UEX-Areva Shea Creek deposits (42 km and 27 km to the north respectively) lie along the western margin of this structural feature. The recently discovered high-grade uranium mineralization found at PLS located 5.7 km to the south, also lies within this structural corridor. Coincidentally, PLN also lies within a complex magnetic corridor showing magnetic highs and lows and breaks in regional major features. Several EM anomalies are evident within PLN, including what may be interpreted to be the southern extension of the Saskatoon Lake EM conductor, which itself is associated with the Shea Creek deposit to the north.
PLN Property
PLN was acquired by staking in 2004 and became part of the Fission Uranium Corp. portfolio as part of the Fission Energy/Denison Mines agreement in April 2013. It comprises 27,408 Ha, and is located about 30 km immediately south of the UEX/AREVA Anne and Collette uranium deposits at Shea Creek. Updated maps for the MT and VTEM survey's and the conductive low magnetic trend sub-parallel to the PLS discovery trend, can be found on the Company's website at http://www.fissionuranium.com/projects/other-sk-properties/.
PLN is prospective for hosting structurally controlled high-grade unconformity uranium mineralization that is often associated with basement graphitic shear zones within clay altered metasedimentary basement lithologies. These features have unique characteristics that can be identified by geophysical surveys.
Azincourt has a staged, four year option agreement with Fission dated April 29, 2013 whereby Azincourt can earn up to a 50% interest in the PLN project through a combination of option payments and exploration work funding.
The technical information in this news release has been prepared in accordance with the Canadian regulatory requirements set out in National Instrument 43- 101 and reviewed on behalf of the company by Ross McElroy, P.Geol. President and COO for Fission Uranium Corp., a qualified person.
About Fission Uranium Corp.
Fission Uranium Corp. is a Canadian based resource company specializing in the strategic acquisition, exploration and development of uranium properties and is headquartered in Kelowna, British Columbia. Common Shares are listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol "FCU" and trade on the OTCQX marketplace in the U.S. under the symbol "FCUUF."
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD
Ross McElroy, President and COO