Thor has a number of project areas in the Northern Territory of Australia with prosepectivity for uranium mineralisation with a history of exploration and proximity to existing discoveries. Several of the projects have had prior exploration, which was in most cases inadequate. The projects are at various stages of evaluation.

The Hale River project covers 160km²  of Tertiary basin sediments. These sediments are prospective for palaeochannel roll-front type uranium deposits. Previous exploration of this project area, undertaken between 1979 and 1981, delineated a redox front within sands containing anomalous uranium.

 

The tenement constituting this project is granted. The Company’s exploration program commenced with an airborne HoistEM survey over the interpreted redox boundaries.

 

 

 

 

 

The first and second phases of a comprehensive uranium exploration program at Hale River have been completed.

 

 

 

 

The first phase of the program comprised a helicopter borne Hoist EM survey covering the company's Hale River and Plenty Highway tenements, which cover some 1,200 sq km of tertiary basin sediments.

 

 

 

 

The Hale River data has indicated a complex south easterly striking channel structure. Zones of conductive and resistive sediments (indicating reducing and oxidizing environments) have been interpreted within the main and subsidiary paleo-channels within the model. The revised modelling has also incorporated previous exploration drilling that has already identified anomolous areas of 'roll front style' uranium mineralisation.

 

 

 

 

Reconaissance aircore drilling at the Hale River Uranium Project has been completed with a total of 28 holes completed to date for 1,549m.

 

 

 

 

The Hoist EM survey was a technical success and identified numerous potential "trap sites" or conductive sediments within the Hale River paleo drainage system. Drilling indicated that the modelled depth to basement was essentially correct and that the conductive horizons identified in the Hoist EM survey were associated with the carbonaceous sediments, pyritic sands and lignite horizons and were not due to saline/hyper saline ground water. The drilling was difficult due to running sands and clay layers and high water flows.

 

 

 

 

Five of the six priority anomolies identified were tested with at least one hole to check the ground conditions, however the most prospective Hoist EM trap site with the coincident surface radiometric anomaly on the eastern side of the tenement could not be drilled due to access restrictions imposed by the Central Land Council.

 

 

 

 

Anomolous scintillometer readings several times background were associated with pyritic sands, carbonaceous clays and lignite. A number of samples returned assays between 20 and 100ppm U, these are considered anomolous and correlated well when compared to results from similar lignite horizons identified in the Hale River Basin by Alcoa in the 1980's.

 

 

 

 

Existing anomolies need further drill testing and work to date has confirmed the presence of suitable "trap sites" for roll front style Uranium mineralization.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Harts Range project covers 362km² of the Proteerozoic Harts Range Metamorphic Complex. The tenements were explored for uranium between 1992 and 1995 following the flying of the airborne radiometric and magnetic surveys. Numerous occurrences of uranium mineralisation were found, many of which were associated with alteration along structural breaks or contacts.

 

Reconaissance sampling of the Harts Range tenement area was completed during October and November 2006, with several areas traversed. The main objective of the sampling program was to identify known prospects and determine optimal access routes and logistics for follow-up exploration. The project includes six tenements.

 

In the October program, eleven rock chips were taken on two out of the six granted tenements. Analysis was completed for 39 elements.

 

Five samples were taken at the Ryoma and Casper prospects, with results confirming the prospectivity of this area returning elevated uranium values ranging from 121ppm to 227ppmU. Results were also elevated in rare earth elements ("REE") such as Yittrium and Zirconium. Sample HR8 also returned up to 1.62% Pb.

 

The results included a single sample result of 31.6% U. This hand-picked sample contained a significant portion of visible uraninite. Significantly, a number of large pegmatite bodies are located within the Harts Range Project.

 

Work to date in the Harts Range Project indicates that sporadic high uranium grades occur along NW trending structural corridors, suggesting a vein-type model for mineralisation such as that at Schwartzwalder in Colorado (USA). Mineralisation here occurs in numerous lenses associated with a major shear fault network and along contacts between mica schist and gneissic rocks.

 

 

In late November, a scintillometer orientation survey and ground reconaissance work was completed over three tenements, with schintillometer readings taken at various locations including several prospects with historic uranium exploration results. In total, fourteen samples were collected.

 

A number of samples returned significant results of >0.10 % U, all of which have a very strong REE association. One particular sample from an area near the Haddock Prospect was high in uranium (8.87% U), tantalum (19%) and noibium (18%), suggesting that the sample contained coarse tantalite crystals. Two significant results of 0.17% U and 0.26% U were also returned from the Garnet Prospect. Previous mapping in this area in 1993 determined that the strongest radioactivity occurs where the pegmatite has been more extensively altered to garnet. Historic PNC assays at this prospect ranged between 18-2,900ppm U, 100-4,000ppm Y and 100-2,600ppm Nb.

 

Further reconaissance rock chip sampling and mapping was completed on the Daicos, Haddock, Mount Mary (Snaf & Indiana) and Starlight Prospects in early July. A total of 39 rock chip samples were collected, all assays are still outstanding. Approximately 12 km of prospective strike length has been identified representing potential host extension or repetitions of episodite-pegmatoid layers.

 

Regional exploration resulted in the identification of a single pegmatite some 6.3km in length and 50m wide at Mt Mary. Two rock chips taken from 'hot spots' in this area returned elevated uranium values ranging from 107 to 246ppm. A second pegmatite, which also has an extensive strike of 2km and an average width of 63m has been identified to the north-east. This requires further investigation.

 

Ongoing exploration will also cover the Snaf and Kelly Prospects, located to the north and south of Mt Mary. Historic rock chip sampling by PNC at these prospects returned very high grade uranium assays ranging from 550-1,580ppm U.

 

 

Thor’s contiguous Plenty Highway and Bundey projects contain about 1,200 km² of Tertiary sediments which cover an internally drained area within the Proterozoic Arunta Block. The sediments have the potential to host economic palaeochannel uranium mineralisation.

 

Both tenements are now granted. At Bundey River, three radiometric anomolies have been identified in the eastern part of the Bundey River Project area from airborne radiometric survey.

 

Reconaissance exploration was completed along the eastern portion of the Bundey River tenement; two samples were able to be taken from this area with disappointing uranium results. While no calcrete samples were able to be taken, a consistently hight scintillometer count was taken over the main drainage channel. Sampling returned an anomolous thorium value in exposed lateritic remnants, confirming the potential for tertiary basin and drainage hosted uranium. 

 

 

The Curtis Pound project is situated over Proterozoic rocks of the Tennant Inlier and contains a number of identified radiometric anomalies. The tenements on which this project is located are granted.