Marenica Energy in-fill drilling augurs well for Resource upgrade at Marenica Uranium Project

Marenica Energy's (ASX: MEY) reverse circulation in-fill drilling has intersected more high grade mineralisation in the Eastern part of the Marenica Resource that will lead to improvements to the geological and resource model.

Well funded Marenica has $4.4 million in cash at bank from a placement to China's Hanlong in December.  Hanlong has shown its hand, with a recent bid for another uranium developer, Bannerman Resources (ASX/TSX: BMN).

All down hole probe results have been received for the East Pit program at Marenica's 75%-owned Marenica Uranium Project located in Namibia, southern Africa.

A total of 205 holes were drilled for 11,201 metres and 86% of holes probed returned significant intercepts of more than 100 parts per million (ppm) uranium (eU3O8).

 Highlights include:

- 8.4 metres at 346ppm eU3O8 from 24.7 metres.
- 8.7 metres at 352ppm eU3O8 from 28.0 metres; and
- 8.0 meters at 352ppm eU3O8 from 33.6 metres.

The company said results indicate a number of zones broadly conforming to a north-east trend within a continuous more than 50 parts per million (ppm) grade envelope.

Within this area, a number of northeast-trending high-grade zones were also identified, some of which remain open to the north and south.

Also, drilling at exploration target MA7 has been completed with a total of 88 holes drilled for 2,525 metres.

Importantly, the positive results from the East Pit Area, which is located within the current JORC resource, support the project's current Pre-Feasibility Study and potentially improve its economics.

Drilling was designed to in-fill the grid pattern to a 100m by 100m spacing in an area of the resource that was previously drilled on a wide-spaced grid (300m by 200m).

By securing $5 million of debt and equity financing from Hanlong, Marenica has  longer-term feasibility and development funding, off-take arrangements and potential cooperation on future strategic acquisitions in the uranium sector up to December 2011.

The current measured, indicated and inferred resource for Marenica is 648 million tonnes at 97ppm for 138 million pounds of uranium.

A scoping study in October last year found that the Marenica Project could deliver 3.5 million pounds of uranium per annum at the highly competitive operating cost of US$38 a pound.

A Definitive Feasibility Study relating to the indicated resources at the Marenica project is expected to be completed by the end of 2012.

Originally published at: http://www.proactiveinvestors.com.au/companies/news/17934/marenica-energy-in-fill-drilling-augurs-well-for-resource-upgrade-at-marenica-uranium-project-17934.html