Mineral development company Energy Fuels Inc. has purchased a mining lease in southeast Utah's Sage Plain District from Uranium Energy Corp. for CAD$500,000.
The Crain Lease is situated on approximately 640-acres in San Juan County, Utah, near the historic Calliham and Sage Mines already controlled by Energy Fuels.
Energy Fuels immediately assigned the Crain Lease to Colorado Plateau Partners, LLC, a 50/50 joint venture of Energy Fuels and Lynx-Royal JV, LLC, formed to explore and develop mineral resources in the Sage Plain District and other nearby areas.
Lynx-Royal has paid CAD $250,000 to Energy Fuels to convey the Crain Lease to the CPP joint venture, halving the cost to Energy Fuels. As the contractual operator of any mines developed by CPP, Energy Fuels will receive all production from this property as mill feed for the company's proposed Piñon Ridge uranium/vanadium mill.
The Crain property resource block is accessible through historic mine workings on Energy Fuels' Calliham property acquired earlier this year. Engineering studies are currently underway to rehabilitate and develop the resources in this district. Preliminary mine permitting activities will begin with the State of Utah within the next 30 days. The Calliham/Sage Plain resources will evolve into Energy Fuels' third fully permitted and production-ready mining project over the next year.
The Sage Plain properties are located within economic trucking distance (about 70 highway miles) of Piñon Ridge, which received a final radioactive materials license from the State of Colorado on March 7, 2011. This license is the most important governmental approval required to build and operate the Piñon Ridge Mill.
"The Sage Plain District historically produced significant quantities of uranium and vanadium,” said Steve Antony, President and CEO of Energy Fuels. “In fact, the vanadium content of the resource is up to nine times higher than the uranium content. Our recent acquisitions in this proven area are important steps toward bringing these mining properties back into production and providing additional feed for the Piñon Ridge Uranium and Vanadium Mill."
