Uranium Energy logs high-grade hits at Roughrider North deposit’s core in Saskatchewan

Drilling at Uranium Energy’s (NYSE: UEC) Roughrider project in northern Saskatchewan has hit high-grades that expand the northern end of the deposit’s core, the company reported Thursday.

Hole RR-961, drilled 840 metres northeast of the main Roughrider deposit, returned 2.4 metres grading 11.4% uranium oxide (U₃O₈) from 330.1 metres depth, with a high-grade sub-interval of 1 metre at 24.9% U₃O₈. Roughrider is located 13 km west of Orano’s McClean Lake uranium mill, on the eastern side of the Athabasca basin, about 750 km north of Saskatoon. 

“The on-going drill campaign at Roughrider North has successfully identified additional high-grade mineralization along strike of what was reported in August,” Chris Hamel, vice-president for exploration in Canada, said in a release. “Drill hole RR-961 expands the high-grade core of this discovery and should help guide the field team to further success in the area.”

UEC’s results come as the uranium spot price, at US$78.50 per lb. on Thursday, continue to trend slightly downward from a peak of US$107 in February. But prices remain 30% higher than last year, giving tailwinds for producers of the nuclear metal. Analysts such as BMO Capital Markets expect the long-term trend of uranium to remain positive for years as China ramps up reactor production and the United States considers restarting idled plants.

Shares in Uranium Energy gained 1.6% to US$5.27 apiece on Thursday morning in New York, valuing the company at US$2.1 billion. Its shares traded in a 52-week range of US$4.06 and US$8.34

High-grade follow-up