Ungava Bay Region
Azimut's discoveries on its Ungava properties during the last three years suggest the eastern part of the Ungava Bay region could become Canada's new uranium district.
In this region, where no uranium mineralization had ever been reported, Azimut used the results from its predictive assessment of the uranium potential covering 640,000 km2 of northern Quebec to stake 5 large properties totalling 8,772 claims on the eastern mainland of Ungava Bay.
The properties lie within in an 80 x 220 km area where AREVA, a world leading enterprise in the nuclear sector, holds 5,093 claims (see map) and recently announced it is highly encouraged by exploration results from its CAGE project.
Azimut believes that with its Ungava properties, it controls a large portion of the significant uranium targets in the region.
Azimut's target deposit type for the Ungava Bay region is a large-tonnage uranium deposit amenable to open pit mining. A well-known example of this type is Rössing in Namibia, one of the world's largest uranium mines. Mineralization discovered thus far on the Ungava properties has been hosted by granitic pegmatites and gneissic rocks. Laboratory analyses have revealed that uranium mineralization is due to the presence of uraninite.
Azimut's Ungava properties share strong similarities with the footprint of several major uranium sites in Quebec, as well as the neighbouring Central Mineral Belt in Labrador, a well-known prospective region for uranium (see map) .
Azimut considers the following to be key regional-scale features that demonstrate the potential for a new uranium district in the Ungava Bay region:
- very distinct region, approximately 220 by 80 km, characterized by high-level uranium anomalies in lake bottom sediments;
- extensive and sharply defined uranium airborne anomalies, often with favourable U/Th ratios, that spatially correlate well with prominent uranium anomalies in lakes;
- discovery of extensive mineralized zones in various host rocks (pegmatite, marble, etc.) with uranium contained in uraninite; and
- favourable geological environment providing ample evidence of a deep-rooted mineralized system.
In 2008, expenditures for Azimut's partner-funded and self-funded uranium exploration programs in the Ungava Bay region will total $2.9 million. Cumulative commitments from the Company's partners in this region reach almost $12 million from 2008 to 2012.
Key results for Uranium
North Rae (optioned to NWT Uranium)
Map of uranium in lake-bottom sediments
Map of grab samples and airborne radiometric data
- 14 priority helicopter-borne radiometric anomalies were defined with a minimum cumulative length of 28 km.
- 7 mineralized zones with a minimum lateral cumulative length of 10 km were discovered with results from 615 grab samples grading up to 3.3% U3O8, and can be spatially correlated with the 2006 airborne anomalies.
- An eighth zone, the Cirrus Zone, was defined using 24 samples grading up to 0.46% U3O8.
- Combined prospecting, ground-based radiometric, geological and structural data suggest significant lateral and depth continuity for all 8 zones.
- Azimut and NWT Uranium agreed to terminate their option agreement (expected closing date of December 31, 2008) for North Rae, allowing Azimut to become the operator and accelerate exploration on its property.
- 2008 Technical Report
Daniel Lake (optioned to NWT Uranium)
Map of airborne radiometric data
- Prospecting discovery of the 6-km-long Puqila zone of radioactive pegmatitic dykes in 2008.
- 15 grab rock samples collected on the property graded up to 0.65% U3O8; results are pending for 432 rock samples.
- Azimut and NWT Uranium agreed to terminate their option agreement (expected closing date of December 31, 2008) for Daniel Lake, allowing Azimut to become the operator and accelerate exploration on its property.
South Rae (optioned to Majescor Resources)
- In the first few days of the initial prospecting program, more than 96 distinct radioactive outcrops grading up to 0.65% U3O8 were identified.
- Significant targets have been identified from airborne radiometric data and grouped into anomalous areas with a minimum cumulative length of 56 km.
- Values of up to 903 ppm uranium were recorded for 603 lake bottom sediment samples, defining 4 multi-kilometre prospective zones.
- Results are pending for the 2008 program, which included 3 drill holes totalling 147 m.