Nov 14 2013
U.S. Rare Earths, Inc., a U.S. based domestic rare earths exploration company with more than 25,000 acres of mining claims in Idaho, Montana, and Colorado, today announced that assays from surface channel sampling, returned Total Rare Earth Oxide (TREO) grades as high as 10.3% with Critical Rare Earth Oxide (CREO) grades running between 1.4% and 1.2% in a known eighteen by four mile mineralized trend in its North Fork properties.
The Company’s CEO Kevin Cassidy stated, "We are delighted with a number of the observations and discoveries identified from our review of the 2013 Phase I drilling and exploration program data. Our announcement today speaks to the enormity of the Company’s land position across 25,000 acres and the richness of concentrations of critical and heavy rare earth oxides that we are seeing. Phase one efforts are providing the confirmation of historical data, including work by The Department of Energy, The Idaho Geological Survey and The Russian Academy of Sciences. The UREE samples that were analyzed by Activation Labs ("Actlabs"), www.actlabs.com, are very encouraging and reinforce our position as a leading source of Critical Rare Earths in America."
Cassidy continued, "We remain committed to position U.S Rare Earths as the primary source of critical rare earths for America and its allies. The Company is determined to unlock this national treasure and committing the necessary investment capital and human resources to do so. When we decided to consolidate rare earth properties in America, the lens we looked through was to select those targets with the highest commercially viable opportunities based on historical data. We are pleased that results from our drilling and channel sampling are confirming that our properties are among the highest concentrations of Critical Rare Earth Oxides reported in North America. Our mission remains the creation of American jobs, while allowing our country to reestablish itself as a global manufacturing leader through the build out of the Company’s resource rich properties."
Today’s news coincides with the Company’s previous announcement that it had extended its 2013 drilling and exploration program on its Last Chance Mine property, in addition to having initiated a new drilling and exploration program on an area that had historically not been mapped or drilled on its North Fork property. As of November 11th USRE has completed drilling four new holes on the Last Chance Vein, for total of eight holes at the property. Road work to access the North Fork area is finished and drill pads are in place.
The Company has broadened its mining claims to more than 25,000 acres as a result of its successful 2013 drilling and exploration program. Surface channel sample assays from the initial 2013 Phase I North Fork exploration efforts identified significant grade percentages of Critical Rare Earth Oxides (dysprosium, terbium, europium, neodymium and yttrium), and Total Rare Earth Oxides.
Based on recent evaluation of the Company’s latest Phase I field exploration sample assay return values, the Company believes there is significant potential to locate a newly defined critical rare earth deposit in the North Fork area of Idaho. Veins were identified based on historic grab samples, Phase I 2013 field mapping, and NI43-101 compliant surface channel sampling. Two channel samples returned average 6.5 feet (2m) REO grades at 10.3% and 8.4% with critical total rare earth grades running 1.4% and 1.2% respectively. The highest grade samples lie approximately 2130 feet (650m) north of the southern samples. The channel sample locations were taken along a known eighteen by four mile mineralized trend with the tenor of the veins indicating a potential for further exploration to tie the structures together. The estimated true vein thicknesses are 6.4 feet (1.95m) and 4.7 feet (1.43m) respectively.
In consideration of the recently received analysis, the Company has raised the North Fork area in priority and expects to begin drilling in the area as part of it Phase II drilling and exploration program this year based on these significant discoveries. The North Fork mineralized system, while different in mineralogy to that of the Lemhi Pass deposit at Last Chance, is seen as a significant opportunity to increase area critical rare earth resources amenable to centralize processing. Advanced exploration will need to be conducted to determine subsurface structure, average grades, and tonnages.
The four additional holes at the Last Chance Mine property have been completed and were placed along the strike of the vein where all four holes intersected the vein at depths between 229 feet (70m) – 492 feet (150m). The initial results of the four sub-surface drill holes in 2013 Phase I drilling and exploration of the Lemhi Pass not only confirmed historic data, but returned both higher grades of TREO and specifically CREO than historically reported.
This area of the Company’s Last Chance Mine property has in-place historic earth workings consisting of access roads and underground tunnels (two adits) extending over 1500 feet (453m). The Company believes it will benefit from existing infrastructure and intends to leverage any such advantage to the fullest extent.
The Last Chance Mine property, located near the mining belt of east-central Idaho and west-central Montana is uniquely positioned for re-entry and development of a processing facility to create American jobs. Continuing exploration is focused on upgrading other historic data and defining new areas located throughout the trend in advance of mining and development of a separation mill.
In the North Fork area, the Company has begun drilling two new holes, which are scheduled to be completed in the next several weeks. Drilling is anticipated to provide subsurface confirmation of the significant results gleaned from compliant surface channel sample work and assays produced from its Phase I drilling and exploration program earlier this year. Subsurface exploration drilling of four holes along strike of a one kilometer (km) carbonatite vein and averaging approximately 6.5 feet (2m) in thickness at the surface is planned for investigation and analysis through 2014.