NexGen announces best ever drill intercept at Saskatchewan uranium project
NexGen Energy Ltd. [NXE-TSX, NXE– NYSE] has announced the best ever discovery phase drilling intercept at its Rook 1.0 uranium property in Saskatchewan.
The company said drill hole RK-25-232 intersected a broad zone of intense mineralization including 3.9 metres of over 61,000 CPS.
The announcement comes after NexGen’s exploration campaign recently delivered a new discovery on the Rook 1.0 property in the Patterson Corridor East (PCE) area located 3.5 kilometres east of its world class Arrow deposit. The company said hole RK-25-232 has materially expanded the shallow inner high-grade subdomain at PCE to 210 metres strike and 335 metres vertical extent.
In a news release on November 12, 2024, NexGen said it had completed a 2024 drilling campaign at PCE that included more than 34,000 metres across a total of 46 drill holes. Upon an initial discovery of intense uranium mineralization at PCE that was announced in March 2024, the company directed all drilling activity to focus exclusively on PCE, whereby 19 of 30 holes intersected mineralization.
In the November news release, NexGen CEO Leigh Curyer said this focused effort has elevated the materiality of PCE with result, including hole RK-24-222 highlighting the increasing potential of the PCE system. “With 600 metres of strike length and 600 metres of depth extent, this new zone located entirely within competent basement rock only 3.5 kilometres from the flagship world-class Arrow deposit has emerged as a compelling and prospective addition to NexGen’s dominant portfolio in the southwestern section of the Athabasca Basin,” he said.
In its latest press release, NexGen said hole RK-25-232 represents the best hole drilled at any NexGen property, including Arrow, during the discovery phase of exploration. It intersected 3.9 metres of over 61,000 cps, indicating rich uranium concentration within a larger 13.8-metre mineralized interval that starts at 452.2 metres. Four additional winter drill holes all located a minimum of 50 metes from RK-25-232 have all encountered high-grade intercepts.
NexGen shares were active on the news, rising 1.4% or 10 cents to $7.16 The shares currently trade in a 52-week range of $12.51 and $6.44.
NexGen is developing one of the world’s largest uranium deposits on its Rook 1 property. The company is backed by one of Asia’s wealthiest investors Li-Ka-shing. In June, 2016, CEF Capital Markets Ltd., an affiliate of the Hong Kong based conglomerate CK Hutchison Group, subscribed for US$60 million worth of convertible debentures in NexGen.
A feasibility study published in March 2021, envisaged a capital expenditure of $1.3 billion and an average cash operating cost over the life of the mine of $7.58 (Canadian) per pound. The company attributed its latest estimates to $310 million in direct and attributable inflationary increases since 2020, and approximately $590 million in increased capital expenditures from enhancements identified through advanced engineering and procurement activity since March 2021.