Fission Uranium (TSX: FCU; OTC: FCUUF) has provided an update on the feasibility study slated to be completed later this year for its 100%-owned Patterson Lake South (PLS) project in the Athabasca Basin. The company reports that the field work for geotechnical, hydrogeological and metallurgical assessments are complete, and importantly, engineering and planning for the proposed mine are now well advanced.
Also in progress are geochemical, flowsheet and tailings management design testing. Metallurgical testing has entered the comminution testing phase. Additionally, the detailed design work for the decline and ventilation shafts is underway. Work on the mineable stope optimizer is completed for the R780E zone and is in progress at the R840W zone. The mine design for the R780E zone is also well underway.
Fission Uranium’s exploration camp in July 2016 at the Patterson Lake South uranium project in northern Saskatchewan. Photo by Lesley Stokes.
Fission has traced the Triple R deposit that occurs within the Patterson Lake conductive corridor over five separate zones along an east-west strike of 3.2 km. The deposit is known to be a large, near-surface, basement-hosted, structurally controlled, high-grade uranium occurrence. It was first discovered in 2015 by drilling. The mineralization is open along strike in both directions.
Using a cut-off of 0.25% uranium oxide, the project contains 102.4 million lb. uranium oxide (U3O8) in 2.2 million indicated tonnes grading 2.1% U3O8. Inferred resources add 32.8 million lb. U3O8 in 1.2 million tonnes grading 1.22% U3O8. About 80% of the property has yet to be explored.
In 2019, the company prepared a prefeasibility study that demonstrated PLS has a post-tax net present value (with an 8% discount) of $702 million and an internal rate of return of 25%. The payback period for the $1.2-billion initial capital investment would be 2.5 years. Construction will take an estimated 3 years and mining would continue for a further 7 years.
The feasibility study is to be completed this year, followed next year by the environmental impact assessment and construction beginning in 2026.
Equity program
Fission also entered into an equity distribution agreement providing for an at-the-market (ATM) offering program with Canaccord Genuity. The company will be able to offer and sell from time to time common shares up to a total price of $50 million on the TSX. The financial flexibility of the ATM program will allow Fission to further enhance and secure advancement for the PLS project.
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