Thunderbird Resources (ASX:THB) has awarded the maiden diamond drilling contract for the Hidden Bay Uranium Project to QB Drilling.
Headquartered in northeastern Saskatchewan, QB Drilling has experience operating in the Athabasca Basin, having been established in 2004.
The company was selected following a rigorous selection process in which six drilling contractors participated.
Work has started on detailed planning for the mobilisation of the drill rig and commencement of drilling in mid-August.
Helicopter support has also been finalised, with lodging secured at Points North and technical support being provided by Dahrouge Geological Consulting. Hidden Bay is located 20km south-west of the historic Rabbit Lake uranium deposit on the eastern flank of Canada’s ‘world-class’ Athabasca Basin.
The upcoming drilling program will comprise some 2,400m of diamond drilling across five highpriority target areas that have been developed by the company’s exploration team based in part, on geological analogues with uranium deposits in the eastern Athabasca Basin.
QB Drilling contract: Thunderbird are go
Thunderbird Executive Chairman George Bauk says following the completion of a recent $4.1 million capital raising, Thunderbird has moved swiftly to secure a drilling contractor to commence operations at the Hidden Bay Uranium Project.
“While a significant amount of time has been devoted to logistics and securing key contracts, we also continue to refine our priority drill targets,” Bauk says.
“This maiden program will test significant gravity lows, amongst other exciting targets, and we are looking forward to the results, which will provide us with valuable insights to further advance this project and hopefully vector into a significant uranium discovery.
“The time is ripe for uranium, and there is no better place for uranium exploration than the Athabasca Basin. Uranium is essential for the future of clean energy, offering a reliable baseload power source. Our exploration success will be crucial in addressing the upcoming supply challenges to meet growing demand.”
With a strategic focus on critical minerals exploration in Canada, Thunderbird is about to embark on a period of high-impact exploration activity across its portfolio of uranium, copper and lithium assets in the Athabasca Basin and Ontario.
The company’s main focus is its drill-ready uranium assets, where it has identified significant drill targets across four projects – Hidden Bay, Cluff Lake, Surprise Creek, and Hook Lake.
With the exception of a handful of world-class deposits which have accounted for 20% of global primary uranium production for the past 60 years, the Athabasca Basin has been largely under-explored for the past 40 years with limited modern exploration and an outstanding opportunity for new discoveries. The average grade across the Basin is 2% U3O8, which 10–20 times the global average.
Write to Adam Orlando at Mining.com.au
Images: Thunderbird
