Deep Yellow completes infill drilling at Tumas 3 uranium deposit
Deep Yellow anticipates an updated resource estimate for the Namibian deposit in July.
Advanced uranium explorer Deep Yellow (ASX: DYL) has completed a five-month reverse circulation infill drilling program at the Tumas 3 uranium deposit in Namibia through its wholly-owned subsidiary Reptile Uranium.
A total 911 holes for 17,679m was completed by three drill rigs at the deposit, which comprises the Tumas 3 Central, Tumas 3 West and Tumas 3 East targets and hosts calcrete-type mineralisation within a mainly east-west trending palaeochannel system.
The mineralisation occurs as a discrete target in what is believed to be a highly-fertile palaeochannel system and is separate from the Tumas 1 (including Tumas 1 East) and Tumas 2 targets, as well as the Tubas red sand-calcrete deposits.
Tumas 3 West drilling
At Tumas 3 West, Deep Yellow completed 107 holes for 3,058m with 36% of these holes intersecting mineralisation greater than 100 parts per million equivalent uranium over 1m.
The work focused on achieving a drill hole spacing sufficient enough to enable a resource conversion from inferred to indicated status.
Best intersections included 9m at 280ppm from 20m and 3m at 391ppm from 9m, both at a 200ppm equivalent uranium cut-off grade.
The company said mineralisation in certain areas at Tumas 3 West was narrower and more holes were required to close it off compared to the major, central part of Tumas 3.
Infill drilling continues at Tumas 1 East which once completed, will conclude the planned resource upgrade drilling program.
Proposed life of mine
Drilling across the Tumas 3 deposit aims to expand the proposed life of mine defined in the project’s pre-feasibility study from 11.5 years to over 20 years.
Probable reserves and remaining indicated and inferred resources identified in the study have been derived from testing 60% of the known regional palaeochannel system.
Deep Yellow said 50km of channel systems are still to be tested and significant upside potential exists to further increase the resource base.
Drilling results will be used to calculate an updated mineral resource estimate for incorporation into a definitive feasibility study.
The company hopes to release an intermediate updated estimate for Tumas 3 later this month.