The Slick Rock Project is an Advanced stage conventional uranium and vanadium project located in San Miguel County, Colorado, approximately 24 miles north of the town of Dove Creek. The project consists of 315 contiguous mineral lode claims and covers approximately 5,333 acres bordering the Sunday/Carnation/Topaz/Saint Jude mine complex, formerly owned by each of Energy Fuels Inc. and Denison Mines Corp. In a news release dated June 8, 2022, Anfield Energy Inc. announced that it had completed the settlement of indebtedness with Uranium Energy Corp. As part of the settlement, an asset swap was completed, where Anfield acquired UEC’s interest in the Slick Rock uranium-vanadium project.
The information below regarding project milestones and recent developments for the Slick Rock Project has been summarized from the Slick Rock Technical Report(1), a copy of which is available under the profile of Uranium Energy Corp. ("UEC") on SEDAR (www.sedar.com), and from UEC's public disclosure.
In April 2014, UEC filed the Slick Rock Technical Report(1), which included a preliminary economic assessment and mineral resource estimate for the Slick Rock Project. The report disclosed an estimated inferred mineral resource of 11.6 Mlbs of U3O8 (2.55 million short tons or 2.31 million tonnes at a grade of 0.228% eU3O8).
The Slick Rock Technical Report(1), included a resource estimate for the project and a preliminary economic assessment, disclosing a base economic case based on annual production of 100,000 tons of mined material per year. For this base case, with a uranium price of US$60.00 per pound and a vanadium price of US$10.00 per pound, the project would generate an estimated pre-tax internal rate of return of 33% and a post-tax internal rate of return of 29% and would have an estimated pre-tax net present value of US$43.8 million dollars (constant dollars) before income tax and a post-tax net present value of US$31.9 million collars (constant dollars), each utilizing a 10% discount rate. The foregoing preliminary economic assessment is preliminary in nature and includes inferred mineral resources that are considered too speculative geologically to have the economic considerations applied to them that would enable them to be categorized as mineral reserves. There is no certainty that such preliminary economic assessment will be realized.
| Mineral Resources – As of December 15, 2012 (100% Basis) | ||||||||
| Measured | Indicated | Inferred | ||||||
| Tons (Mt) |
Grade (% U3O8) |
Content (MLbs. U3O8) |
Tons (Mt) |
Grade (% U3O8) |
Content (MLbs. U3O8) |
Tons (Mt) |
Grade (% U3O8) |
Content (MLbs. U3O8) |
| 2.55 | 0.23 | 11.60 | ||||||
Note:
(1) Technical Report Preliminary Economic Assessment, Slick Rock Project Uranium / Vanadium Deposit, San Miguel County, Southwest Colorado, USA with an effective date of April 8, 2014, prepared for UEC and authored by Douglas Beahm, PE, PG, Bruce Davis, FAusIMM, and Robert Sim, P. Geo.
The Slick Rock Royalty is a 1.0% net smelter return uranium royalty on the Slick Rock Project. The royalty applies only to uranium produced at the project and does not apply to vanadium or other minerals.
In the Management Discussion and Analysis for the year ended December 31, 2024, Anfield announced that In June 2024, Anfield received final approvals for its drill permit application to commence a 20-hole, 20,000-foot rotary drill program at the Slick Rock project. In September 2024, Anfield announced that it had commenced the drill program at Slick Rock, and on January 29, 2025, Anfield announced that it had completed a 14-hole, 14,100-foot rotary drill program.
In a news release dated April 9, 2024, Anfield disclosed that it had submitted its production reactivation plan for the Shootaring Canyon mill to the State of Utah's Department of Environmental Quality. The plan addresses the updating of the mill's radioactive materials license from its current standby status to operational status and the increasing of both throughput capacity and the tripling of licensed production capacity. Following approval of the reactivation plan and mill refurbishment, Anfield will be able to both recommence uranium production and start vanadium production in 2026.
The Slick Rock Technical Report states an updated preliminary economic assessment for the combined Velvet-Wood and Slick Rock Projects. Project cost estimates are based on a conventional random room and pillar underground mine operation at the Velvet-Wood and Slick Rock mine areas. Mined material would be hauled by truck to the Shootaring Canyon Mill approximately 180 miles from Velvet-Wood and 200 miles from Slick Rock. Commodity prices used in the PEA are US$70.00/lb. for uranium oxide and US$12.00/lb. for V2O5. Respective mill recoveries are estimated at 92% U3O8 and 75% V2O5. Total initial capital expenditures, not including current and sunk costs, is estimated at US$122.3 million. Total weighted average operating expenses is estimated at US$244 per ton mined and processed. The total cost per ton to produce saleable uranium and vanadium products is estimated at US$290 per ton. This compares to an estimated gross value of US$741 per ton.
The technical report highlights a pre-tax project internal rate of return of 40% and a net present value of US$238 million, based on a discount rate of 8% and a uranium price of US$70.00/lb., along with a vanadium price of US$12.00/lb. for the two combined projects. The report states average annual production of approximately 750,000 pounds of uranium and 2.5 million pounds of vanadium per year is estimated over the 15-year mine life. The technical report estimates 1.7 million tons containing some 7.7 million pounds eU3O8 for the Slick Rock project alone, with a vanadium to uranium ratio of 6 to 1.
The PEA contained in the Slick Rock Technical Report is preliminary in nature and includes inferred mineral resources that are considered too speculative geologically to have the economic considerations applied to them that would enable them to be categorized as mineral reserves. Accordingly, there is no certainty that the preliminary economic assessment will be realized.
The information below regarding project milestones and recent developments for the Slick Rock Project has been summarized from the Slick Rock Technical Report(1), a copy of which is available under the profile of Uranium Energy Corp. ("UEC") on SEDAR (www.sedar.com), and from UEC's public disclosure.
Shallow uranium and vanadium mineralization has been known in the area of the Slick Rock Project since the early 20th century, with the region being first mined for uranium until 1923. The area remained active from the 1930's through to the early 1980's. However, exploration activity ceased between 1983 and 2006 as a result of uranium pricing declines. Between 2006 and 2008, the Slick Rock Project and the region were the subject of various exploration activities by several operators.
UEC acquired its initial interest in the Slick Rock Project in 2010 by staking 88 mineral load claims that had lapsed and acquiring additional mineral load claims from individuals in consideration for a 1% royalty interest. Since then, UEC has further expanded the project through additional staking.
(1) Technical Report Preliminary Economic Assessment, Slick Rock Project Uranium / Vanadium Deposit, San Miguel County, Southwest Colorado, USA with an effective date of April 8, 2014, prepared for UEC and authored by Douglas Beahm, PE, PG, Bruce Davis, FAusIMM, and Robert Sim, P. Geo.
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Uranium Royalty Corp.
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