Assay Results from Drilling at Energy Ridge
Hautajärvi Area, Lapland County, Northern Finland
London 09 January 2006. Agricola Resources PLC (“Agricola”), the OFEX-traded resource company involved in uranium exploration, is pleased to report the analytical results from the initial phase of drilling over the Energy Ridge uranium discovery at Hautajärvi, Lapland County, Northern Finland. One vertical hole and five inclined holes were drilled for a total of 252 metres of drilling. 101 one metre sections of drill core have been analysed. Sample preparation and analysis were carried out at the Geological Survey of Finland’s laboratory at Rovaniemi, Finland by XRF (X-Ray Fluorescence) techniques. Thirty-six major and minor elements were analysed. Location of the drill holes are shown below
All drill cores were scanned by a scintillometer for radioactivity reading. Based on the results, selected sections from three drill holes (HA 002, HA 005 and HA 006) were sent for assay. Drill holes HA 001, HA 003 and HA 004 were in the area of high radioactivity where Agricola now knows the high surface results were related to the secondary mineral widenmannite (see previous news release on 9 January 2006). Agricola was unable to get core recovery from these surface zones because the overburden was not sampled during drilling.
Zones of pink albite-carbonate mineralisation were found in drill holes HA 005 and HA 006 where the rocks are dipping away North and South from Energy Ridge. The mineralised zones are in non-magnetic schistose rock type with strong albite and carbonate alteration. As bedrock fracturing was present core recovery problems were encountered in and above the mineralised zones.
In drill hole HA 005 seven metres of mineralised albite-carbonate zones were located with the best value of 0.33% U308 (uranium oxide) from 33.00 to 33.90 metres. 5.8 metres of mineralised albite-carbonate zones were located in HA 006 with the best value of 0.19% U308 between 13.10-14.10 metres. Some sections in drill hole HA 002 showed albite alteration with minor uranium contents. It is not possible to give true grades and thickness of the mineralisation because of core loss and future drilling will need to take this into account. Further drilling will take place in early 2006.
Agricola has signed confidentiality agreements with three companies with a view to forming a joint venture operation on the Energy Ridge Project. One of the companies, a Canadian uranium producer, has inspected the core and taken samples for mineralogical examination. This company will propose an exploration work program, including geophysics, to Agricola.
Commenting on the results, Dr. Jan Ola Larsson, Agricola’s technical director, states “We are very encouraged by the results although we encountered some difficulties with core recovery which may have resulted in some loss of uranium oxide. Geophysical and drilling studies will be undertaken in 2006. The grade of these intersections will be assessed by geophysical logging and chemical assay, the results of which will be announced in due course. We expect this in situ geophysical logging to give a better indication of the grade because some uranium oxide may be lost during the drilling process. The geological studies suggest that Energy Ridge is similar to albitite uranium deposits in the Ukraine, where the Severinskoye deposit contains 50,000 tonnes of uranium, at a grade of less than 0.2% uranium.”
The Directors of the Issuer accept responsibility for the contents of this announcement.
Contact :
Dr. Robert Young, Chairman
Agricola Resources plc
Tel: +44 (0) 1353 648 931
Mr. Gavin Burnell
Ruegg & Co Limited
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7584 3663
Fig.1 - Hautajärvi Project area, Lapland county, N. Finland
Bedrock geology with location of Energy Ridge Uranium discovery
Location of Agricola reservation claims ”Hautajärvi no. 1-7 and 8-9”
Fig.2 - Claim reservations Hautajärvi nr 1-9, Lapland, N. Finland
with location of Energy Ridge Uranium mineralisation
Fig.3 - December 2005, drillhole plan with interpreted outline
of uranium target zone from combineddata
Fig.4 - Drilling of DDH HA 05 005 at Energy Ridge Uranium mineralisation, Hautajärvi area, Lapland, N. Finland.
The 45 degree angled hole is drilled from a bog area to 47.00 m depth with thickness of bog and glacial overburden being 10.80 m. The hole was completed in eight hours of drilling on October 24, 2005.
High grade uranium mineralisation is noted in the drillcore between 33.00-33.90 m. This high grade mineralised zone is interpreted to extend along the edge of the bog in east - west direction close to and almost parallell to the forest line seen in the picture (projected in red in figure below).
Drilling operator is Finnish company OY KATI AB, using a highly mobile drillrig. Picture view towards east.
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