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Widely regarded as the most favourable place in the world for exploring and mining uranium, the Athabasca Basin in northern Saskatchewan is home to the hugely ambitious Unity Energy Corp. (TSX-V: UTY). Operating under the mantra of “seeking tomorrow’s energy today”, Unity has indeed displayed impressive foresight in the procurement of its highly enviable property portfolio.
Controlling 9 highly prospective projects in and around the most prospective areas of the Athabasca Basin, a region that is also home to Cameco (TSX-V: CCO), Areva Resources, Hathor Exploration (TSX-V: HAT) and Fission Energy (ASX: FIS), Unity has recently found itself in a particularly fortuitous position.
Unity’s Waterbury Lake project is surrounded on all sides by claims controlled by uranium giant Cameco, and proximal to several significant uranium deposits including Hathor’s Roughrider project and Fission’s Waterbury Lake project.
What makes the strategic location of Waterbury significant to the future of Unity is this; Cameco has made an offer for Hathor Exploration in a deal that values the junior company at approximately $625 million, offering $4.50 per share. The offer was initially made on August 30th 2011 at $3.75 per share but has since been increased and extended until November 29th. Prior to the increased offer, Rio Tinto also waded into the fray, making its own bid of $4.15 per common share in an attempt to scoop up pounds in the ground.
Without doubt, the bug guns are hungry for the coveted land and when the acquisition of Hathor is complete, it begs the question; who will be next? Only 2 other companies have properties in the area, Fission Energy, with over 100 million shares already out, and Unity Energy Corp.
Waterbury Lake
Unity acquired the Waterbury Lake property in March 2010 and, with a VTEM survey, promptly delineated 3 significant target zones: the Huskie Zone, the Charger Zone and the Bishop Zone, all perceived to be shallow as basement depths range from 150 metres to 275 metres, dipping to the south.
The Huskie Zone is northeasterly trending and has a strike length of 6,300 metres. It consists of weak basement conductors that appear like “pearls on a string”, a geological characteristic similar to Hathor’s Roughrider deposit. Unity has delineated 6.3 kilometres of this “pearls on a string” feature.
Just south of a northeast conductive zone with a strike length of 3,100 metres lies the Charger Zone, open to the north and northeast. The conductive zone corresponds to the Q-10 South and Q-27 zones, explored extensively by Cameco farther to the north. The southernmost portion of the conductor, which loosely follows the trend of a magnetic high, but in the north it cuts across the magnetic fabric, is interpreted as an approximately 500-metre-wide anomaly, likely within the sandstone, which displays moderate conductivity that probably extends to the unconformity. This circular feature is bounded on three sides by magnetic highs.
The northern extent of the strongest conductive zone observed in the survey extends for 150 metres to 200 metres onto the Waterbury project. The conductive zone varies from 500 metres to 900 metres in width and is 2 kilometres northeast of Cameco'sNatona Bay zone. It correlates with magnetic lows or lower gradients. The Bishop zone was identified as a priority target since the current magnetic interpretation could indicate that structures and alteration may extend beyond the conductor and into the Bishop Lake area.
Unity intends to focus on an “off-conductor” model for exploration on Waterbury Lake, as uranium mineralization is usually resistive, or non-conductive. This is based on the theory that conductors are not necessarily targets but rather an indication of a possible alteration zone in which uranium mineralization may be present.
Off-Conductor
This “off-conductor “ approach has quite a history in the Athabasca Basin, and also provides something of a lead-up to Cameco’s interest in expanding its landholdings.
Unity, we have established, is keeping some very prosperous company. Waterbury Lake is surrounded by Cameco-controlled claims and is in close proximity to the Midwest Mine which has proven and probable reserves of 18,900 tonnes of U308 with an average ore grade of 5.47%. Also in the vicinity is Hathor’s Roughrider Zone which boasts a Mineral Resource estimate of 116,000 tonnes grading 2.57% U308 containing 6.58 million pounds U308 in the Indicated category and 83,000 tonnes grading 3% U308 containing 5.47 million pounds U308 in the inferred category.
Fission’s nearby 40,256 hectare Waterbury Lake property is another regional success story, having established a joint venture with the Korea Waterbury Uranium Limited Partnership and recently announced assay results from its Waterbury Lake 2011 winter drill program which increased the strike length of its J Zone by over 300%.
Not only does the proximity of these deposits and the Midwest Mine suggest a probability for similar geology and potentially a similar style of uranium mineralization at the Unity prospects, but their approach to exploration ties in with Unity’s too.
Cameco’s Millennium Deposit, Dennison’s (TSX-V: DML) Wheeler River Project and Fission’s Waterbury Lake discovery were all made “off-conductor,” i.e. 100-300 metres away from the pelitic conductive zones. In addition, several discoveries, most notably Hathor’s Roughrider zone, were found to exist within the basement, beyond the drilling depths of historical exploration.
Roughrider’s story is an interesting one. Cameco once owned the Roughrider property and, in a bid to find uranium, used standard Athabasca Basin exploration methods. They conducted an airborne survey and looked for “conductors” from graphite readings as uranium is usually right under the largest concentrations of “conductors” a.k.a. graphite. The results were disappointing and Cameco sold the property to Terra Ventures who in turn sold it to Hathor.
Thinking outside the box, Hathor applied a new exploration model. They drilled deeper and off of the conductor readings and they found the Roughrider deposit, essentially re-igniting Cameco’s interest in Roughrider and in Hathor and inspiring other explorers in the area, such as Unity, to adopt the “off-conductor” approach. Hence, Unity’s particularly fortuitous position.
In Other News
Of course, with 8 other properties in the Unity property pack, Waterbury hasn’t been garnering all of the company’s attention. In June the company completed a heliborne VTEM geophysical survey over its Close Lake, Lampin Lake, Hoppy Lake, Kirkpatrick Lake and Dickens Lake projects which consisted of approximately 3,385 line kilometres with 100-metre spacing. They are currently awaiting preliminary interpretation and will use the data to refine target zones.
In July Unity established a new wholly owned subsidiary, Patrone Gold Corp., to which it will transfer its Dickens Lake gold assets. Dickens Lake consists of four adjoining mineral dispositions and covers an area of over 6,000 hectares in a the La Ronge gold belt; a region that has produced over 600,000 ounces of gold and where over $70 million has been spent on gold exploration and development since 1980. The company expects to undertake an internal reorganization and work with the appropriate authorities to transfer the Dickens Lake assets from Unity Energy to this new wholly owned subsidiary.
Not content with its already impressive lot, Unity has also recently staked a prospective uranium exploration property known as the Mitchell Lake property. The 2,354 hectare claim is on the eastern edge of the Athabasca Basin, adjoining to the south, Cameco’s Mitchell Lake Zone and 2.2km to the south, UEX’s West Bear Deposit. The acquisition symbolises another significant feather in the Unity Energy cap.
Management
Wearing that cap, and leading Unity’s team of dedicated industry professionals and local first nation peoples, is President and CEO Anita Algie BSC. Algie was formerly a Director of Aroway Minerals Inc. (TSX-V: ARW), AlderonResource Corp. (now ADV.V), and August Metal Corp. (TSX-V: AGP). She is currently a director of two CPCs, Portia Explorations Ltd. (TSX-V: PEL.P), Titus Capital Corp. (TIS.V) and has been involved in corporate finance and public relations for public companies over the last 7 years.
Director and Qualified Person is Peter Born, P.GEO. A highly respected senior geologist, Born brings over 30 years experience exploring and evaluating mining properties to the table, including several years of uranium exploration in the Athabasca Basin and the Thelon Uranium Basin of the Northwest Territories.
On the seasoned and savvy advisory board are Allan McNutt P.GEO. and Thomas Tough P.ENG. GEO., and completing the team is Director Aleece Gibb and CFO and Director Richard Ko.
Only Just Beginning
Unity Energy has accumulated a delectably diverse portfolio of promising properties in the Athabasca Basin and on the La Ronge gold belt. That in itself makes the company a serious contender in the junior uranium exploration field. Add to that its strategic location alongside Canada’s uranium giant Cameco, and the fact that Cameco has displayed obvious interest in expanding its landholdings, and suddenly Unity has found itself standing on the shoulders of giants. With a share price of only $0.20, it looks like the adventure, for Unity, is only just beginning.
Follow the company’s progress at www.unityenergycorp.com