Here's another Interesting read concerning (ISR) And the Topic...

Here's another Interesting read concerning (ISR) And the Topic of Grades:) Great to see BLR has OPTIONS unlike many other Uranium Exploration Co's Who have not, Yet Another Plus to BLR.

Uranium is the Attention Getter
May 31 2007 3:33PM

At the recent New York Hard Assets Conference (May 14-15, 2007), there were a number of companies giving presentations as well as a number of noted newsletter writers giving talks. I can tell you that at any presentation where the topic of presentation was Uranium – there was standing room only and you could have heard a pin drop in the room. Attendees were literally hanging onto every word spoken by the presenters.

The one idea that was common to all was the notion that Uranium spot prices are headed higher, driven so by a glaring supply-demand imbalance. The question, though, that has been nagging at me is how high is too high? At what price inflection point does Uranium as an energy source no longer make sense? This week I finally found my answer thanks to the Canadian Nuclear Safety Association (CNA).

It turns out the cost breakdown of operating a nuclear reactor is 5% related to Uranium and 95% related to things like labor, management salaries, maintenance etc…So with this being the case, we could easily see Uranium prices carry on with their upward trajectory. In fact CNA spokeswoman Claudia Lemieux quoted in the Globe and Mail on Friday May 18th says Uranium prices could go to $1000 per pound and not have a deleterious effect on the operating costs of a reactor. Similar comments by Ux Consulting LLC of Georgia claim that $500 Uranium is not out of the question.

However, investing in Uranium stocks is not a slam dunk, easy-money proposition. Getting at the Uranium mineralization is a challenging issue and remains so. This has been aptly illustrated by the trials and tribulations of Cameco at its Cigar Lake Project in Saskatchewan, Canada. Consider also the plans by UEX Corp. to spend a reported $100 million just to sink an exploratory shaft on their property. The other issue is that of grade. Investors instinctively always seem to ask what is the grade? But we are not talking Gold mining here. As I will explain in a moment, grade is of secondary importance when exploring for Uranium.

Of primary importance to investors is the Uranium geological setting. You see, in North America, Uranium mineralization occurs in 2 basic formats – Pegmatite style mineralization and Unconformity style mineralization. Pegmatite formations were created 1.5 billion years ago by hot, molten, igneous volcanic matter coming to surface and re-crystallizing. Certain areas of Canada are ripe with such pegmatite formations that lay just beneath surface. Unconformity style mineralization occurs in those areas where a layer of metamorphosed sedimentary sandstone overlays a layer of older rocks. Around 1.5 billion years ago as compressive forces in the earths crust gave way to tensile forces, massive fault zones opened up and hot hydrothermal liquids rich in base metals, precious metals and Uranium rushed to surface. Where these hot liquids intersected the sandstone layer, the mineralization in the liquids precipitated out of solution. This zone of intersection is called the unconformity.

In places like the Athabasca Basin made famous by the mining activities of Cameco, up to 1200 feet of sandstone may overlay the unconformity zone. Getting at this mineralization entails sinking a shaft through the sandstone. Sandstone, if you have ever seen it or handled it, is brittle. As shaft sinking progresses, the chances of having the sandstone crack apart increase proportionately. And this is exactly what happened at Cigar Lake. The sandstone cracked, water seeped in and a series of untimely management decisions resulted in the entire underground operation flooding.

Investors who have studied the Thelon Basin may or may not be aware that a similar issue exists. The Thelon Basin is structurally similar to the Athabasca Basin in that the Uranium mineralization is unconformity style. Depths of sandstone are apparently up to 600 feet. There is one other area of North America that deserves attention and that is Wyoming. Here the mineralization is also unconformity style but the unique geology to the area means the mineralization can be recovered by a technique called in-situ leaching in which a sodium bicarbonate solution is injected at pressure down a well that has been drilled into the unconformity. A series of recovery wells strategically placed in the surrounding area are then used to recover the Uranium-rich slurry.

Newsletter writer Doug Casey is well aware of geological setting issues. He recently made a comment in the Bull and Bear newspaper to the effect that investors now should be starting to focus on those companies that are exploring in areas away from these Basins. And I trust you can see why he would say this. The cost of drilling through the thick layer of sandstone is far from cheap. Any eventual mining or bulk sampling will entail having to sink a shaft which will be prone to a Cigar Lake type of flooding incident. Mr. Casey goes on to argue that investors should now be looking at companies exploring in lower grade areas absent the thick sandstone cover. With rising Uranium prices, the economics of lower grade deposits are starting to really make sense.

BLR Holding 24c ***So no need to annoyed at the overseas investors being given the chance to pick up at 24 YOU HAVE ALSO BEEN GIVEN THE OPPORTUNITY NOW:)

Cheers
And Its Good To see AGS putting up a fight at present, currently $2.05 a Bargain and CUY at $1.67 is very Tempting having fallen from $3.10