Arkle Resources is days away from launching its maiden drilling campaign in Namibia after confirming multiple uranium-bearing targets through historical drillhole analysis and new trenching at its Erongo Uranium Project.
The London-listed explorer will mobilise a drilling rig to the site on 29 June to begin a 1,500-metre reverse-circulation drilling programme, following encouraging evidence from 106 legacy drillholes and newly excavated trenches that has strengthened confidence in the project’s uranium potential.
The decision to commence drilling follows the completion of a downhole gamma-ray survey across EPLs 8995 and 8298, in which Arkle identified uranium mineralisation in 16 historical drillholes that returned intercepts exceeding 50 parts per million equivalent uranium oxide over one metre or more.
Seven of those holes recorded grades above 100 ppm eU₃O₈, including one metre grading 303 ppm eU₃O₈ from 6.5 metres in RC28 and two metres grading 215 ppm eU₃O₈ from 15.5 metres in RC27. The survey also highlighted broader uranium mineralisation extending over 9.4 metres elsewhere on the licence, providing direct targets for the company’s maiden drilling campaign.
At the same time, geological teams have excavated seven trenches across a large uranium leucogranite target on EPL 8995, exposing stacked leucogranite sheets interlayered with metasedimentary rocks over approximately 700 metres of strike.
The trenches have revealed visible secondary uranium minerals, including carnotite within fracture systems, while field radiometric readings indicate uranium mineralisation throughout the exposed rocks. Laboratory assays are now awaited to confirm grades.
Chief executive Rory Harding said the exploration team had quickly translated its desktop interpretation into field results.
“We are now firmly into the field, and the early signs from the ground are encouraging,” Harding said.
He said the trenching programme had exposed exactly the stacked leucogranite sheets the company had expected to encounter, along with carnotite in fractures, providing a clear visual indication of uranium mineralisation.
Harding said the completed gamma-ray survey had also provided “real subsurface confidence”, with several historical drillholes directly guiding the design of the initial drilling programme.
“With the contractor engaged and making preparations, we expect to be drilling within days,” he said.
The initial programme will comprise approximately 42 reverse-circulation holes totalling 1,500 metres across palaeochannel targets on EPL 8995. Subject to the outcome of the current trenching and sampling programme, Arkle plans to follow this with a fully funded additional 2,500 metres of drilling later this year. At the same time, geological mapping and geophysical surveys continue across its wider licence package in the Erongo uranium province.
