Categories: Energy
Topics: General Energy

Azincourt Energy (TSX-V: AAZ)(OTCQB: AZURF) CEO Alex Klenman on Vectoring in on Uranium Discovery at East Preston

Gerardo Del Real: This is Gerardo Del Real with Resource Stock Digest. Joining me today is the CEO of Azincourt Energy, Mr. Alex Klenman. Alex, how are you today?

Alex Klenman: I'm well, Gerardo, it's always great to get on here and keep your listeners up to date on what we're doing.

Gerardo Del Real: Let's get right into it. We chatted about a month or so ago. We talked about the potential for a discovery, or we should say a discovery of what appeared to be uranium alteration. You've now identified and confirmed uranium enrichment at the East Preston project. That uranium enrichment is important because of the direction that it gives you moving forward. You've had a busy week of trading in what's been a soft market for most companies. I wanted to have you back on and just provide everybody with an update on where things are, and what comes next.

Alex Klenman: Yes, happy to. So obviously the results really confirmed what we have hoped, and that is that there is uranium in the alteration zones. So it's one thing to find the alteration zones, which primarily are hematite, but also have clays. As you and I have spoken to in the past, these are indicators. They're halos. These alteration systems basically act as a halo at or near mineralization.

So we knew we were sniffing, we were getting in the right neighborhood. Now that the amazing thing was we didn't just get a few hundred meters of alteration. We've got about almost two kilometers, 1,700 meters worth of alteration zones, which is quite a massive thing. It's not a small zone at all. And we've talked about the footprints of uranium deposits. And then, we always talk about the 200 million pounds at zone two at MacArthur.

And we're talking about, I guess it's what, 90 meters long, by 40 meters wide, by 70 meters deep. So considering we have 1,700 meters of alteration to dig around in, finding a deposit, you can see how you can literally ... they're hiding in plain sight. So now that we've confirmed uranium is in the system, in the alteration zone, that really helps us hone in the next set of drills into some of these more promising zones where we're starting to see higher PPM uranium, and we're beginning to get the better background levels that we need to see. And I think it's very exciting. And now the market of course, it wasn't primed for that, but often these things take time. You have to be able to move the project forward, and that's what we're doing.

Gerardo Del Real: Let's get into what comes next there, because I understand that there's also a plan to complete a first drill program at another project, which of course means the second half of this year is going to be extremely busy for, Azincourt. Tell me about that.

Alex Klenman: Yeah, well, we're really excited. Obviously, listen, East Preston is our flagship. We've sunk a ton of money into it. We really believe we're onto something special there and that'll continue to be our focus. But we also have a great second project up in the northeastern side of the basin. It's right on the Walston corridor, which is where all the production is. You know, we're within spitting distance of several working mines and big deposits and it's in the right area. It has the right amount of indicated data. It was a Rio Tinto/Hathor project. There already is established mineralization up to almost 2.5%, which is higher grade.

So we know we've got something to drill there. The great thing is that it really looked to be the perfect fit for us to get there in September and October, as opposed to waiting for the winter. So, as you mentioned, the next few months are going to be quite busy. Right now, we're in permitting process for both. We expect to have permits in hand within this next 60 days or so. Then we'll announce our drill program at Hatchet. This is part of our earn-in with ValOre Metals. We're going to spend about a million, million and a half on that drill program. And then we'll come right back to East Preston, we'll be on the ground in December prepping for a January drill.

And again, we'll have two rigs going. We'll probably do another 5,000 meters or so, and we'll really try to hit into some of these zones that are showing the better numbers and giving us the love that we need to have, and it really helps to prioritize. So it's going to be a great eight to 12 months ahead.

Gerardo Del Real: The fundamentals for uranium as a commodity are as bullish as they've ever been, Azincourt will have not just one, but two active exploration programs. A lot of news flow between now and year end. I think the second half of this year is going to be a whole heck of a lot better for shareholders than the first half has been. Despite the fact that you've done some really, really quality work to set that second half up. Anything to add to that, Alex.

Alex Klenman: Yeah, no, I think you hit the nail on the head. I mean, there's a lot of things conspiring against a lot of the uranium companies right now. We're all moving lockstep. So no one's really breaking out. Like today, I've got a watch list of about 30, 35 different uranium stocks. They were all green. Now that isn't an accident, everything's moving, they move together. Tomorrow, if it's a peel off day, we're going to see all red on those stocks. So we're no different than anybody else. Our chart is very, very similar to everybody else. But what you do see is the wider swings, more volatility with explorers, and we are by definition a pure explorer.

But I think it's worth noting too, our market cap today is pretty close to our cash treasury. So to be able to buy into a uranium company as active as we are, with the institutional support that we have, where we're trading near our cash value, it's an opportunity. That's the best way to put it.

Gerardo Del Real: Well, it's one that you're taking advantage of personally, right? Which I love to see by the way.

Alex Klenman: Yeah. I was actually buying in the market today for the first time in a few weeks. Obviously I couldn't buy while we were waiting for the drill results. But you know, I mean, I'm by no means Elon Musk. I can't go in and buy up the entire market. But I can tell you I can buy when I can, and I did today, and I will continue to add to my portfolio with Azincourt, and simply because the price is ridiculously low. And it's not ideal for those of us who've been holding for years, and buying for years, but the opportunity to buy it this cheap ... You know, go look at some of the charts in our space from ... Go back to the summer of 2021, and look at what happens before you know it. I mean, these things start to move and I'd like to see that green in my portfolio.

Gerardo Del Real: Same. Same. Alex, always a pleasure. Thank you.

Alex Klenman: I appreciate it, Gerardo. Thanks so much.

Gerardo Del Real: All right. Chat soon.

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