Baselode Energy (FIND) - Shallow, Open Pit, Low-Grade Uranium Works

Baselode Energy Corp. (formerly Rider Investment Capital Corp.) is a fully-funded uranium exploration company looking for the next world-class deposit in the Athabasca Basin area of northern Saskatchewan, Canada. The company is focused on discovering near-surface, basement-hosted, high-grade uranium orebodies outside of the Athabasca Basin. The company has utilized innovative and well-understood geophysical methods to map deep structural controls in order to identify shallow targets for diamond drilling. By doing so, the company can make a discovery that could go into production at an expedited rate.

Matt Gordon caught up with James Sykes, CEO, and Director, Baselode Energy. James brings over a decade of Athabasca Basin uranium exploration and discovery experience to the team, most notably from prominent roles for NexGen’s Arrow deposit and having provided invaluable work on Hathor’s Roughrider deposits. Over the past 10 years, he has been directly and indirectly involved in the discovery of over 500Mlbs of U3O8 (Triuranium Octoxide) in the Athabasca Basin. His education credentials include a B.Sc. degree in Geology. 

Company Overview

Baselode Energy Corp. currently controls 100% rights to surface exploration on 71,821 hectares in the Athabasca Basin area in northern Saskatchewan, Canada. The company has 2 high-potential projects in the Athabasca Basin area, which account for roughly 20 percent of global annual uranium production. The company is exploring basement-hosted deposits outside of the traditional “unconformity-controlled” uranium deposits, with an emphasis on avoiding sandstone cover, and instead focusing on near-surface, structurally-controlled mineralization that could be mined easier than deposits that lie underneath the sandstone cover. The company was founded in 2018 and is headquartered in Toronto, Canada. It is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX-V: FIND) and the OTC Markets (OTCQB: BSENF).

Baslode Energy was live at the PDAC (Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada), promoting its ACKIO uranium discovery, which features near-surface uranium mineralization and excellent potential for open-pit mineralization.

The company has released scintillometer results on multiple occasions. These results helped the company in defining the Roughrider asset in the past. A scintillometer is a scientific device used to measure turbulent fluctuations of the refractive index of air caused by variations in temperature, humidity, and pressure. Higher radioactivity levels equal better uranium mineralization. A 10,000 CPS (counts per second) from a handheld scintillometer can indicate over 1% U3O8 presence. The data has helped the uranium side of operations while the company waits for the pending assay results. It is currently working on developing a CPS-to-U3O8 ratio. 

Athabasca Basin’s History

Based on the past economics and history of the Athabasca basin, it is evident that the vast majority of mines have been open-pit or decline-accessible in basement rocks. Notably, there are only 2 mines with shafts in the entire Athabasca basin, namely McArthur and Cigar Lake which both have over 20% grades.

As per Baselode Energy, open pits with 100m sandstone cover usually carry over 1% grades. Deposits with shallow mineralization such as the Rabbit Lake had an average grade between 0.2% and 0.25%, which made for a 40Mlbs resource, enabling the development of the mill for mining the Colin’s Bay deposits. It also helped build the mill for the Eagle Point deposit to be mined out. Cluff Lake had a number of open pits with average grades between 0.3%-0.35%. This allowed the construction of the mills while also enabling decline access into underground mines. Uranium City has a similar case with open pits and declines where average grades were between 0.2% and 0.25%.

In gold equivalency terms, the grades for the ACKIO uranium discovery are assumed at 0.2%. At a $60 uranium contract price and a $1,800oz gold equivalent value, the deposit is estimated to have 0.2% or 4.6g/t gold equivalent grades. The ACKIO  uranium discovery has open-pit characteristics. The company believes that grades of 0.2% or grades are favourable when compared to projects with similar economics in the United States and Australia. 

The Differentiating Factor

Baselode Energy has plans to initiate beneficiation studies either in late 2022 or early 2023. This would allow for sample collection in order to determine whether a 3%-3.5% grade can be produced. The grades could then be optimised for the Key Lake mill. The company is looking to determine the mineralogy of the deposit, as it would aid in understanding the recovery potential in the current mills.

Ever since its inception, the company has focused on standing out amongst its peers. It devised the Athabasca 2.0 idea, which takes into account the past findings along with recent history. The idea is based on the assumption that Athabasca Basin was a lot larger in the past, and that there’s significant potential for southern basins that lie outside. The company anticipates that the southern area outside the Athabasca basin may feature near-surface, high-grade uranium deposits. As these deposits are found, it is simply a matter of focusing on the structures and how they pull out fluids into the basement rocks. Baselode Energy has staked all its projects based on this strategy, which differentiates it from the competition. The strategy is based on sound technical knowledge. The ACKIO discovery appears to conform to this theory.

Baselode Energy is focused on finding the next mine as opposed to a new discovery. The company is looking to define the ACKIO discovery and determine the uranium supply. This near-surface discovery is the focal point for the company. So far, it has found 25m-35m of overburden material on top of the mineralization. The discovery features a very good strip ratio. If a sizable resource can be defined, it will be mined. The company has already found the bulk of the mineralization which offers potential for further exploration. It is looking to drill and prove the deposit’s potential. 

Cash Position

Baselode Energy had $15M in cash flow at the end of May. The company’s current burn rate is estimated at $1M per month, which accounts for 2 drills, and helicopter support along with G&A (General and Administrative expense). The company does not have any flow-through commitments and is working on hard dollars. It is looking to achieve its goal of drilling 30,000m by the end of 2022. Following the end of the drilling program, the company is expected to have between $5M-$8M in the bank, going into 2023.

To find out more, go to the Baselode Energy website