27 August 2021

Resource Upgrade of 10% - Tiris Uranium Project

KEY POINTS:

·    Resource upgrade of 10% or 5.0 million lb U₃O₈ to the Company's Tiris uranium deposit in Mauritania, bringing the total JORC Resource to 56 Mlbs (at a 100 ppm U₃O₈ lower cut-off grade).

·    2.4 Mlbs U₃O₈ of the total 5.0 million lb U₃O₈ Resource Upgrade is classified as  Indicated Resource with the remainder as Inferred Resource.

·    The Resource Upgrade follows Aura recently commissioning a new resource estimate on the Sadi South Zone to incorporate drillholes not included in earlier resource estimates.

·    Prior to the Resource Upgrade, the Tiris Uranium Project held a Resource of 50.6 Mlbs U₃O₈ at a grade of 254 ppm U₃O₈ (at a 100 ppm U₃O₈ lower cut-off grade), including 38.4 Mlbs at 343 ppm U₃O₈ (at a 200 ppm U₃O₈ lower cut-off grade)[1]. 

·    The Resource upgrade supports the Company's belief that the potential exists for the resource to increase in size as further exploration work is undertaken.

·    Aura is currently planning further exploration and drilling programs for Tiris.

Aura Energy Limited (AEE:ASX, AIM:AURA) ("Aura Energy", the "Company") is very pleased to announce a Resource Upgrade of 10% or 5.0 million lb U₃O₈ for the Company's Tiris Uranium Project in Mauritania, bringing the total JORC Resource to 56 Mlbs at a grade of 254 ppm U₃O₈ (at a 100 ppm U₃O₈ lower cut-off grade).  Aura Energy is the operator and has an 85% interest in the Tiris Uranium Project.

The Resource Upgrade follows Aura recently commissioning a new resource estimate on the Sadi South Zone to incorporate drillholes not included in earlier resource estimates. This has resulted in a 5.4 Mlbs U₃O₈ increase in the Tiris resource of which 2.4 Mlbs is classified as Indicated Resource with the remainder classified as Inferred Resource.

Prior to the Resource Upgrade, the Tiris Uranium Project held a resource of 50.6 Mlbs at a grade if 254 ppm U₃O₈ (at a 100 ppm U₃O₈ lower cut-off grade), including 38.4 Mlbs at 343 ppm U₃O₈ (at a 200 ppm U₃O₈ lower cut-off grade)[2]. 

Within this resource Aura has defined Proven and Probable Reserves of 8.1 Mlb U₃O₈ at an average grade of 336 ppm U₃O₈ and completed a Definitive Feasibility Study.[3]

Aura Energy CEO and Managing Director, Peter Reeve, commented: "We are very excited by this Resource Upgrade at the Tiris Uranium Project, as it confirms our belief that the Resource will continue to increase in size as further exploration work is undertaken.

The Company continues to seek operating and capital expenditure cost reductions, whilst concurrently planning future exploration activities to further increase resource size and the potential of the opportunity.  With Stage 2 exploration initiatives now underway, including an opportunity review to lower operating costs and capital expenditure, Aura is also exploring the potential positive impact on Tiris operating cost from vanadium by-product recovery.

We continue to progress the Company through the planned exploration and enhancement activities and look forward to relisting on the ASX."

As announced (ASX Release 21 May 2021), the ASX advised that upon the Company undertaking sufficient exploration on its projects in line its proposed expenditure commitments and following the completion and results of those exploration programs being released to the market, the ASX would be in a position to reinstate Aura's securities to trading on the Official List.

Following the latest resource estimation, the Tiris Resource Inventory is as follows[4]:

The Tiris Resource occurs in a number of zones in two regions in northern Mauritania, which Aura groups into 2 deposit groups: Tiris East and Tiris West, which are sufficiently far apart to be regarded as separate operations.  Refer Figure 1.

Aura's current focus is on the larger of these deposits, Tiris East, over which Aura has been granted 2 exploitation permits for 30 years from February 2019. 

The resources at Tiris East lie in 3 zones: Hippolyte, Lazare and Sadi, all of which will be served by a central processing plant.  The 5 Mlb U₃O₈ resource extension is at the southern end of the Sadi zone.

The current resource estimate at Tiris East is:

Table 2: Tiris East Resource Summary, August 2021.

Table 3: Tiris East Resource Classification, August 2021. 

Note: Totals may not add due to rounding.

To view Figure 1: Location of Aura's Tiris uranium resources, please click here: http://www.rns-pdf.londonstockexchange.com/rns/9979J_1-2021-8-27.pdf
               

High Grade Zones within the Resource

Parts of the mineralised zones have substantially higher grades than the global average.  As indicated in the resource tabulation in Table 2 at a cut-off grade of 300 ppm, Tiris holds 25 Mlbs U₃O₈ at 455 ppm U₃O₈ (all resource categories) .

Resource Estimation

The latest mineral resource estimate at Sadi South was prepared by Mr Oliver Mapeto, an independent resource consultant who was responsible for undertaking the original Tiris Resource estimate in 2011 on behalf of Coffey Mining. 

The latest resource upgrade is based on air-core drilling with 96 mm bit conducted by Australian contractor Wallis Drilling and chemical analysis by ICP carried out by ALS Global in Ireland

In addition to the aircore drilling on which the Tiris East resource estimate is based, 59 large diameter (PQ) diamond drillholes for density determination and overall validation have been drilled in Tiris East zones at Hippolyte and Lazare, each located about 20 km from Sadi South in identical mineralisation.

Measured Resources have been delineated generally by a drill pattern of 50m x 50m, Indicated Resources by 100m x 50m or 100m x 100m and Inferred Resources by 100m x 200m drill patterns.

The mineralisation is of pedogenic calcrete uranium style.  It occurs on and within Proterozoic rocks of the Reguibat Craton.  The mineralisation is developed within near surface altered and weathered granites and within shallow colluvium lying on granite or adjacent metasediments. Mineralisation forms flat lying tabular bodies ranging in thickness from 1 to 12m with some mineralisation occurring very close to surface. Internal waste patches occur within the mineralisation envelope.

AC drill cuttings were riffle split on site to extract approx. 2 kg samples for assay for the downhole intervals 0 to 0.5m, 0.5 to 1.0m, 1 to 2m, & thereafter in 1m intervals to end of hole.

Drill samples were prepared for analysis at an ALS Global facility in Nouakchott and pulps for analysis were sent to an ALS laboratory at Omac in Ireland for analysis by ICP after 4 acid digestion (ALS Method MS-ICP61)

Grade estimation at Sadi South was done using the Inverse Distance - Power 2 (ID2) estimation method.

A lower cut-off grade of 100 ppm U₃O₈ within a 75 ppm U₃O₈ envelope has been used for reporting.   The Definitive Feasibility Study (footnote 3) indicated that this is an appropriate cut-off grade for mining in an open pit scenario. While this cut-off is relatively low compared to operating uranium mines metallurgical test work has indicated that a significant upgrade in uranium and decrease in sulphates can be achieved by a simple scrubbing and sieving process. 

As detailed in the DFS the ore will be extracted by conventional mining methods using backhoe excavators and dump trucks. No drilling or blasting of the ore or overlying materials is planned due to the unconsolidated nature of the materials.

The metallurgical process detailed in the DFS is conventional beneficiation (by rotary scrubbing plus screening) followed by heated alkaline uranium leach and ion exchange.  These metallurgical processes are well tested technology and appropriate for this style of mineralisation.

To view Figure 2:  Sadi South Zone (dark green polygon) showing AC drillholes. Bright green polygon is area of previous resource estimate. Orange dots indicate drillholes not included in previous resource estimates, please click here: http://www.rns-pdf.londonstockexchange.com/rns/9979J_2-2021-8-27.pdf

To view Figure 3:  Map showing Resource classification in relation to drillholes, please click here: http://www.rns-pdf.londonstockexchange.com/rns/9979J_3-2021-8-27.pdf


To view Figure 4:  Sadi South Section 2806400 showing block model, please click here http://www.rns-pdf.londonstockexchange.com/rns/9979J_4-2021-8-27.pdf

To view Figure 5:  Sadi South Section 2806800 showing block model, please click here http://www.rns-pdf.londonstockexchange.com/rns/9979J_5-2021-8-27.pdf

Table 4: Tiris East Resources August 2021 - Detail by Zone

Note:  totals may not add due to rounding.

Tiris Uranium Project

With Uranium demand increasing driven by a shift towards carbon free energy, Aura's 85% owned Tiris Uranium Project is well positioned as a low capex and low operating cost project.

In July 2021, Aura Energy commenced Stage 2 exploration at the Tiris Uranium Project, with results expected before the end of the 2021 Calendar Year.

The key results expected in this timeframe are:

·    Detailed results of the Tiris Opportunity Review with several items being considered to lower operating costs for the project

·    Completion and outcomes of the net zero emission study by Wood PLC

·    Water drilling results continuing the 2019 findings

·    Potential positive impact on Tiris operating cost from vanadium by-product recovery

Project Attributes

The Project has several natural attributes which result in low capital and operating costs:

·    Shallow flat-lying surface mineralisation (predominantly only 1-5 metres deep within unconsolidated gravels and weathered granite)

·    Low-cost mining with no blasting and negligible overburden

·    Uranium ore can be simply (wash and screen) upgraded by up to 700% from 335ppm to 2500ppm

·    Very small plant and footprint with minimal supporting infrastructure

·    Leach feed grade 2,000 - 2,500 ppm U₃O₈ with 94% leaching recovery in 4 hours

This ASX Release was authorised by the Aura Energy Board of Directors.

For Further Information, please contact:

Competent Persons

The Competent Person for the 2021 Sadi South Resource Estimate and classification is Mr Oliver Mapeto, an independent resource consultant.  The information in the report to which this statement is attached that relates to the 2021 Resource Estimate is based on information compiled by Mr Oliver Mapeto.  Mr Mapeto has sufficient experience that is relevant to the resource estimation.  This qualifies Mr Mapeto as a Competent Person as defined in the 2012 edition of the 'Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves'.  Mr Mapeto is a Member of The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (AusIMM) and consents to the inclusion in the report of the matters based on his information in the form and context in which it appears.

The Competent Person for drill hole data and for integrating different resource estimates is Mr Neil Clifford.  The information in the report to which this statement is attached that relates to compiling resource estimates and to drill hole data is based on information compiled by Mr Neil Clifford.  Mr Clifford has sufficient experience that is relevant to the style of mineralisation and type of deposit under consideration and to the activity which he is undertaking to qualify Mr Clifford as a Competent Person as defined in the 2012 edition of the 'Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves'. Mr Clifford is an independent consultant to Aura Energy.   Mr Clifford is a Member of the Australasian Institute of Geoscientists. Mr Clifford consents to the inclusion in the report of the matters based on his information in the form and context in which it appears.

Glossary of Technical Terms

"cut-off grade" The lowest grade, or quality, of mineralised material that qualifies as economically mineable and available in a given deposit. May be defined on the basis of economic evaluation, or on physical or chemical attributes that define an acceptable product specification;

"g/t" grams per tonne;

"kg" kilogram;

"Indicated resource" a part of a mineral resource for which tonnage, densities, shape, physical characteristics, grade and mineral content can be estimated with a reasonable level of confidence. It is based on exploration, sampling and testing information gathered through appropriate techniques from locations such as outcrops, trenches, pits, workings and drill holes. The locations are too widely or inappropriately spaced to confirm geological and/or grade continuity but are spaced closely enough for continuity to be assumed;

"Inferred resource" a part of a mineral resource for which tonnage, grade and mineral content can be estimated with a low level of confidence. It is inferred from geological evidence and has assumed, but not verified, geological and/or grade continuity. It is based on information gathered through appropriate techniques from locations such as outcrops, trenches, pits, workings and drill holes that may be limited or of uncertain quality and reliability;

"JORC" the Joint Ore Reserves Committee, http://www.jorc.org/;

"JORC 2012" is the current edition of the JORC Code (http://www.jorc.org/docs/JORC_code_2012.pdf), which was published in 2012.  After a transition period, the 2012 Edition came into mandatory operation in Australasia from 1 December 2013;

"m" metres;

"Measured resource" a part of a Mineral Resource for which tonnage, densities, shape, physical characteristics, grade and mineral content can be estimated with a high level of confidence. It is based on detailed and reliable exploration, sampling and testing information gathered through appropriate techniques from locations such as outcrops, trenches, pits, workings and drillholes. The locations are spaced closely enough to confirm geological and grade continuity;

"Mkg" million kilograms;

"Mlbs" million pounds;

"Mlbs" million tonnes;

"oz" ounce(s);

"ppm" parts per million;

"t" tonnes;

"Total M&I" sum of measured and indicated resource;

"U₃O₈" (also "U3O8") the chemical formula for Triuranium octoxide, which is a compound of uranium.

APPENDIX 1 - JORC Code, 2012 Edition - Table 1

2021 TIRIS RESOURCE ESTIMATE

Section 1 Sampling Techniques and Data

(Criteria in this section apply to all succeeding sections.)

Section 2 Reporting of Exploration Results

(Criteria listed in the preceding section also apply to this section.)

Section 3 Estimation and Reporting of Mineral Resources

(Criteria listed in section 1, and where relevant in section 2, also apply to this section.)