Uranerz Reports Production Well and Development Update
CASPER, WYOMING -- (Marketwire) -- 03/29/12 -- Uranerz Energy Corporation ("Uranerz" or the "Company") (TSX: URZ)(NYSE Amex: URZ)(FRANKFURT: U9E) is pleased to report that it continues to receive good uranium grades in holes drilled for well-field installation. The recent hole drilled for well A-15 returned 18 feet with an average grade of 0.561% eU3O8, yielding a grade-thickness ("GT") of 10, the best hole ever drilled by the Company. Using six drill rigs, a combined total of 165 monitor and production wells have been installed in Production Area # 1 of the Nichols Ranch unit. To date, 24% of the installed production wells have a GT near or above 2.
Examples of some of the best recent drilling results from the wells are provided below:
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Including
Thickness Grade (best
Well Number (feet) %(i) GT(ii) thickness/grade%(i))
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A15 18.0 0.561 10.01 3.0' of 2.420%
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A20 4.0 0.602 2.41 2.0' of 1.044%
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A21 10.5 0.210 2.20 2.0' of 0.543%
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A22 14.5 0.218 3.16 3.0' of 0.550%
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A23 15.0 0.224 3.36 2.0' of 0.750%
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A28 17.5 0.398 6.97 5.0' of 0.939%
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A31 14.0 0.233 3.26 5.5' of 0.386%
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A32 8.5 0.234 1.99 1.0' of 0.713%
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A41 9.5 0.213 2.02 2.5' of 0.506%
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A53 17.5 0.161 2.81 1.0' of 0.494%
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A58 5.0 0.447 2.24 2.5' of 0.803%
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A60 16.5 0.238 3.93 1.5' of 0.790%
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A64 16.0 0.268 4.29 2.5' of 0.532%
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B12 8.0 0.50 4.00 3.5' of 1.039%
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G6 10.5 0.256 2.69 3.0' of 0.539%
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(i) All well pilot holes are electric logged with a standard suite of logs
including resistivity, self-potential, and natural gamma
expressed as eU3O8. eU3O8 is the equivalent (e) to chemical U3O8 when the
ratio of uranium to its decay daughter products is equal to 1. The gamma
detection instruments are calibrated in the Casper, Wyoming, US Department
of Energy test pits every 60 days.
(ii) GT represents grade multiplied by the thickness and is calculated by
multiplying eU3O8 grade (in percent) by gamma anomaly thickness (in feet) as
determined from down-hole radiometric probing. For example, a drill hole
that has 10 feet of 0.10% uranium mineralization has a GT of 1.0 and would
be considered a good hole by ISR mining standards.
Development of the process and ancillary support infrastructure for the Nichols Ranch ISR Uranium Project continues on schedule. All buildings are fully enclosed with the maintenance shop approximately 97% complete. Interior wall framing is ongoing in the office, laboratory and processing plant buildings. The ion exchange vessels are currently being internally plumbed. Once this is completed, installation of process piping will be initiated. "We have been fortunate that the Wyoming winter weather this year allowed us to continue construction without stoppage and construction is proceeding as planned", stated Glenda Thomas, Vice President, Production.
Mr. Kurtis Brown, the Company's Senior Vice President, Geology and Development, is a "qualified person" as defined by Canadian National Instrument 43-101 and oversees the Company's well installation programs. He has reviewed the technical disclosure related to the Company's results that are provided in this news release.
About Uranerz
Uranerz is a U.S. mining company focused on near-term commercial in-situ recovery ("ISR") uranium production, and is currently constructing its first ISR mine in Wyoming. ISR is a mining process that uses a "leaching solution" to extract uranium from sandstone uranium deposits; it is the generally accepted extraction technology used in the Powder River Basin area of Wyoming. The Company controls a large strategic land position in the central Powder River Basin of Wyoming. Uranerz' management team has specialized expertise in the ISR uranium mining method, and a record of licensing, constructing, and operating ISR uranium projects. The Company has entered into long-term uranium sales contracts for a portion of its planned production with Exelon and one other of the largest nuclear utilities in the country.
Further Information
For further information, please contact Derek Iwanaka, Manager of Investor Relations at 1-800-689-1659 or by email at investor@uranerz.com. Alternatively, please refer to the Company's website at www.uranerz.com, review the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission at www.sec.gov, or visit the Company's profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.
Forward-looking Statements
This press release may contain or refer to "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable United States and Canadian securities laws, which may include, but are not limited to, statements with respect to its exploration and development drilling programs, statements with respect to its exploration and construction plans, and all statements setting out projections or estimates or describing future plans or expectations. Such forward-looking statements reflect our current views with respect to future events and are subject to certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions, including, the risks and uncertainties outlined in our most recent financial statements and reports and registration statement filed with the SEC (available at www.sec.gov) and with Canadian securities administrators (available at www.sedar.com). Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those anticipated, believed, estimated or expected. We do not undertake to update forward-looking statements, except as required by law.
Contacts:
Uranerz Energy Corporation
Derek Iwanaka
Manager of Investor Relations
1-800-689-1659 or (604) 689-1659
(604) 689-1722 (FAX)
investor@uranerz.com
www.uranerz.com