LONDON (ShareCast) - (Sharecast News) - Aura Energy announced a resource upgrade of 10%, or five million pounds of triuranium octoxide, for its Tiris Uranium Project in Mauritania on Friday, bringing the total JORC resource to 56 million pounds at a grade of 254 parts of triuranium octoxide per million, at a 100 parts per million lower cut-off grade.
The AIM-traded firm is the operator of, and has an 85% interest in, the Tiris Uranium Project.

It said the resource upgrade followed its recent commissioning of a new resource estimate on the Sadi South Zone, to incorporate drill holes not included in earlier resource estimates.

That resulted in a 5.4 million pound triuranium octoxide increase in the Tiris resource, of which 2.4 million pounds was classified as indicated resource, with the remainder classified as inferred.

Prior to the resource upgrade, the Tiris Uranium Project held a resource of 50.6 million pounds at a grade of 254 parts of triuranium octoxide per million at a 100 parts per million lower cut-off grade, including 38.4 million pounds at 343 parts of triuranium octoxide per million at a 200 parts per million lower cut-off grade.

Within that resource, Aura had defined proven and probable reserves of 8.1 million pounds of triuranium octoxide at an average grade of 336 parts per million, and completed a definitive feasibility study.

"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," said managing director and chief executive officer Peter Reeve.

"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 two 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."

At 1023 BST, shares in Aura Energy were up 3.24% at 5.42p.

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