EL 24291 and EL 26796 Beatrice Project Annual report 4 July 2008 to 3 July 2009

Abstract

The Beatrice project comprises two exploration licences (EL 24291 and EL 26796), located in western Arnhem Land, approximately 250 km east of Darwin. The project ELs were granted to Cameco Australia Pty Ltd (Cameco) on 4 July 2008 for an initial period of six years. The total area covered by the licences is 356.99 km2. The Beatrice tenements lie to the south of the Myra Falls Inlier. The northern part of EL 24291 is bisected by the east trending Beatrice Fault, to the north of which lies Mamadawerre Sandstone, and to the south is the Beatrice Inlier, comprised of outcropping Nimbuwah Complex gneisses and granites, intruded by Oenpelli Dolerite, and bounded to the southeast by the Bulman Fault Zone. Mamadawerre Sandstone overlies the majority of the remainder of EL 24291. EL 26796 is almost entirely Mamadawerre Sandstone, with a small area in the northwest corner comprised of undifferentiated Cainozoic sediments. The focus of Cameco's exploration strategy in Arnhem Land is the discovery of unconformity-related uranium deposits, and this is the focus of all exploration conducted. The exploration program consisted of airborne geophysical surveys, and helicopter-supported ground activities, comprising geological mapping, reconnaissance, and outcrop sampling. A helicopter borne time domain electromagnetic survey, known as VTEM, was flown over both exploration licences EL 24291 and EL 26796. The survey coverage for both areas totalled 1694 line km (1599 line km and 95 line km respectively) with a line spacing of 250 m and a tie line spacing of 2500 m. A fixed wing airborne magnetic and radiometric survey was also flown, totalling 4982 line km of data collection. A flight line spacing of 100 m and tie line spacing 1000 m was used during the magnetic/radiometric survey for both EL 24291 (4420 line km) and EL 26796 (364 line km). An additional 198 line km composed of 50 m flight lines, and 500 m tie lines, were flown to infill the larger survey over EL 24291. This was done to provide increased spatial resolution in the Beatrice prospect area. 79 points on EL 24291 were visited. 26 samples from 13 stations were submitted for chemical analysis, and 4 samples were submitted for thin-section analysis. The Beatrice prospect was discovered by airborne radiometrics in 1970. Mapping done by Cameco in 2008 has generated a local geology map for the Beatrice prospect and immediate surrounding area. 4 rock chip samples were taken from the Beatrice prospect, with a maximum assay result from sample BT080013 of 0.15% U3O8, in a strongly chloritised sheared granite. A radiometric grid survey (218 points) was conducted over the prospect to better define the surface radiometric contour map with direct comparison to surface geology than that provided by the airborne survey. Continuation of anomalous uranium between the airborne radiometric anomalies BT_ARAD_2 and BT_ARAD_8 was confirmed, and this is now called the Violet prospect. 6 rock chip samples were taken, and results include sample BT080020 with 8.8 ppm U3O8, in a hematised and bleached, finemedium grained sandstone. Further work required includes detailed mapping and sampling at the Beatrice and Violet prospects; and mapping, geological reconnaissance, and outcrop sampling of the remainder of the unvisited radiometric anomalies, as well as several airborne and ground geophysical surveys.