The Salamanca project is made up of three distinct deposits which will be mined independently of each other, namely:
-Retortillo (including the Santidad satellite deposit);
-Zona 7; and
-Alameda.

Zona 7
The mineralised zone is a 2-3km scale fold structure with the dominant strike direction being NNE-SSW. Despite the general dip of the host geological units and structures ranging from 50-80°, the mineralised zone is interpreted to be sub-horizontal to shallowly dipping due to the nature of the mineralisation processes.

The uranium mineralisation is hosted within Lower Cambrian metasediments adjacent to granite. The mineralisation typically occurs as a sub-horizontal to shallowly dipping layer occurring between surface and 100m depth, although mineralisation has been recorded to a maximum depth of 217m. The style of the uranium mineralisation includes veins, stockwork and disseminated mineralisation in joint/fracture filling associated with brittle deformation. Uraninite and coffinite are the primary uranium minerals. Secondary uranium mineralisation is developed in "supergene-like" tabular zones corresponding to the depth of weathering. Most of the mineralisation is hosted within partially weathered and unweathered metasediment. This deposit falls into the category defined by the International Atomic Energy Association (IAEA) as Vein Type, Sub Type Iberian Type.

Retortillo
The mineralisation at Retortillo covers a 6km sub-vertical syncline structure with the dominant strike direction being SE-NW. Despite the general dip of the host geological units and structures ranging from 50-70°, the mineralised zone is interpreted to be sub-horizontal (due to post mineralisation supergene processes) to shallowly dipping to the SE.

The uranium mineralisation is hosted within Ordovician metasediments adjacent to granite. The mineralisation typically occurs as a sub-horizontal to shallowly dipping layer occurring between surface and 90m depth. The style of the uranium mineralisation includes veins, stockwork and disseminated mineralisation in joint/fracture filling associated with brittle deformation. Uraninite and coffinite are the primary uranium minerals. Secondary uranium mineralisation is developed in "supergene-like" tabular zones corresponding to the depth of weathering. Most of the mineralisation is hosted within totally and partially weathered metasediment. This deposit falls into the category defined by the International Atomic Energy Association (IAEA) as Vein Type, Sub Type Iberian Type.

Alameda
The mineralisation at Alameda has two strong orientations. The main body of the mineralisation trends in a NE-SW direction over a strike length of approximately 800m. To the north, the mineralisation trends in a NNW-SSE direction, sub parallel to lithology, over a strike length of approximately 1,500m. Despite the general dip of the host geological units and structures ranging from 50-70°, the mineralised zone is interpreted to be sub-horizontal (due to post mineralisation supergene processes) to shallowly dipping to the SE.

The uranium mineralisation is hosted within Cambrian metasediments adjacent to granite. The mineralisation typically occurs as a sub-horizontal to shallowly dipping layer occurring between surface and 180m depth with strong structural control on either side of a central breccia zone. The style of the uranium mineralisation includes veins, stockwork and disseminated mineralisation in joint/fracture filling associated with brittle deformation. Uraninite and coffinite are the primary uranium minerals. Secondary uranium mineralisation is developed in "supergene-like" tabular zones corresponding to the depth of weathering. Most of the mineralisation is hosted within partially weathered (51%) and unweathered (46%) metasediment. This deposit falls into the category defined by the International Atomic Energy Association (IAEA) as Vein Type, Sub Type Iberian Type.

The Salamanca project is made up of three distinct deposits which will be mined independently of each other, namely:
- Retortillo (including the Santidad satellite deposit);
- Zona 7; and
- Alameda.

Retortillo and Zona 7 will be mined sequentially with ore being processed in a common processing facility while Alameda will be mined in parallel with the other sites.

All of the deposits being considered are shallow (ranging between 0m to 160m depth below surface) and massive. Due to the depth and geometry of the deposit, the selected mining method is conventional drill blast truck and shovel open pit mining. Strip ratios will vary per deposit as follows:
-Retortillo: 2.47 tonnes of waste per tonne of ore;
-Santidad: 1.36 tonnes of waste per tonne of ore;
-Zona 7: 1.13 tonnes of waste per tonne of ore;
-Alameda: 1.08 tonnes of waste per tonne of ore.

Retortillo
The deposit is shallow (between 0 to 140m) and massive, the pre-strip is therefore low with a stripping ratio 2.2 (t to t). Due to the depth and geometry of the deposit, the selected mining method is Open Pit mining ensuring a good recovery of the deposit. Some of the pre-strip material will be used as construction material. Access to the pit will be by conventional open pit ramps, 25m in width that enables access for 100 t trucks.

Zona 7
The deposit is shallow (between 0 to 100m) and massive, the pre-strip is therefore low with a stripping ratio 1.13 (t to t). Due to the depth and geometry of the deposit, the selected mining method is Open Pit mining ensureing a good recovery of the deposit. Some of the pre-strip material will be used as construction material. Access to the pit will be by conventional open pit ramps, 25m in width that enables access for 100 t trucks.

Alameda
The deposit is shallow (between 0 to 160m) and massive, the pre-strip is therefore low with a stripping ratio 1.08 (t to t). Due to the depth and geometry of the deposit, the selected mining method is Open Pit mining ensuring a good recovery of the deposit. Some of the pre-strip material will be used as construction material. Access to the pit will be by conventional open pit ramps, 25m in width that enables access for 100 t trucks.

Overall Pit Wall Slope Angles:
- 34-61 degrees for Retortillo,
- 47-59 degrees for Zona 7, and
- 34-59 degrees for Alameda.

At Zona 7 only a primary crushing circuit will be required. The crushed ore will be conveyed ten kilometres to the process plant located at Retortillo. The secondary crushing circuit at Retortillo will be upgraded to include a tertiary stage.

The ore will be treated by heap leaching and processed through a conventional circuit and sold as drummed U3O8 concentrate. An important environmental benefit of backfilling the treated ore reclaimed from the on/off heap leach pads into the mined pits, is the removal of the requirement for a tailings storage facility.

The process flowsheet comprises crushing, screening, agglomeration, stacking and heap leaching using on/off leach pads, followed by uranium recovery and purification by solvent extraction.

The conveyed ore is agglomerated, continuously stacked and irrigated with a dilute sulphuric acid solution. The ore types have reported impressive metallurgical recoveries averaging 88% with low acid consumption and a short residence time.

The concentrated uranium solution from the solvent extraction plant is treated to precipitate the uranium and calcined to produce U3O8 concentrate.

At Zona 7 only a primary crushing circuit will be required. ........