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(Sharecast News) - Power Metal Resources said on Monday that drilling at its Badger Lake uranium project in Canada's Athabasca Basin was scheduled to begin on 1 March, marking the next phase of exploration at the joint venture-led property.
The AIM-traded explorer said a 2,100-metre diamond drilling programme would test two major shear zones and the S-Zone target, which underlies a significant uranium, cobalt and nickel soil anomaly.
It said the work would be undertaken by Fermi Exploration, the uranium-focused joint venture that holds Power Metal's uranium licence portfolio, with contractors and permits now in place.
Badger Lake is located in northern Saskatchewan, with Power Metal saying it represented an unconventional Athabasca Basin target, as the S-Zone was not associated with graphitic pelitic units that typically host unconformity-related uranium deposits in the region.
Instead, the target was defined by two sub-parallel, sub-vertical fault corridors known as the Eastern and Western Shear Zones, which are interpreted to have acted as long-lived conduits for mineralising fluids.
Geophysical data indicated reduced rock competence within the structures, while gravity modelling highlighted a dense body between the shear zones consistent with silicification, a common alteration feature in Athabasca uranium systems.
The initial drill programme would comprise an early three-hole fence designed to test the shear zones at the unconformity, expected at depths of around 220 to 260 metres, and into the underlying basement to as much as 200 metres below.
Power Metal said the programme retained flexibility to adjust targeting as results were received, with scope for additional holes within the existing metreage budget.
"The forthcoming drill programme at Badger Lake represents the third high-impact drill campaign undertaken by Fermi Exploration and reflects the disciplined, technically driven approach we continue to apply across the Joint Venture's uranium portfolio," said chief executive Sean Wade.
He added that while the delay to drilling had been "frustrating", it had allowed the technical team to refine targets and focus on the most compelling structural features.
Wade described Badger Lake as "an unconventional but highly coherent target within the Athabasca Basin, defined by strong structural controls, coincident geophysical responses and a polymetallic soil geochemical signature", and said the company looked forward to advancing its understanding of the system as drilling started.
At 1203 GMT, shares in Power Metal Resources were up 0.78% at 16.12p.
Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.