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Ravenscrag Property

mapping + geology

On October 17, 2005 Solitaire Minerals Corp. announced that it has signed a letter of intent with Sandswamp Exploration Ltd. to purchase 100% interest in 4 metallic and industrial mineral permits collectively referred to as "The Ravenscrag Uranium Property", totaling approximately 150,000 acres.

Property Highlights
Target Mineral Uranium
Interest 100%
Area 172,000 Acres (69,607 hectares)


These four permits were strategically staked to target five main continentally derived sedimentary formations, which favourably match the criteria of the worldwide geological model recognized for sandstone-hosted (roll-front) uranium mineralization. These formations include the Tertiary aged "Cypress Hills" and "Ravenscrag" sandstone formations and the Upper Cretaceous "Whitemud" and "Eastend" sandstone formations in addition to channel sands within the "Bearpaw" shale formation. All of these formations are very similar in age and material composition as the south-western Alberta "Willow Creek", "St. Mary River", and "Blood Reserve" formations already being explored by other uranium exploration companies with favourable, reported results.

The southern Alberta sandstone-hosted uranium district was quietly explored by several uranium companies in the 1970's to early 1981. The uranium price crash of the early 1980's brought a sudden stop to all efforts to find Alberta's first sandstone uranium mine. With the current and rapid increases in uranium price and a favourable long-term uranium price forecast, southern Alberta has again received the focused attention of serious uranium exploration companies. The first mineral permit in 25 years, publicly staked for uranium in southern Alberta, occurred at the start of 2005. Since then a staking rush of approximately 2.5 million acres of mineral permits has been taken in Alberta for sandstone-hosted uranium. Some of these properties held by other companies, have quickly progressed from a mere grassroots uranium project based on theory and geological comparisons to sandstone uranium producing areas of the United States, to drill-ready prospects within a short eight month span.

Solitaire Mineral Corp.'s new "Ravenscrag Uranium Property" is located in South-eastern Alberta, 160 km east of the city of Lethbridge, near the communities of Eagle Butte and Elkwater, Alberta. The eastern boundary of the property is the Saskatchewan / Alberta border. The land within the property is sparsely populated rural cattle rangeland with some grain agriculture intermixed. Paved Highways 41 and 514 cross the centre of the property while a network of well maintained graveled roads, which support the local farming and oil industries, provides access to most other parts of the property.

The historical uranium exploration highlights of this property include:

  • Two Alberta Geological Survey documented (OFR 1994-8) uranium in well water samples that returned 244 ppb U and 104 ppb U respectively, in the vicinity of a faulted zone at the Eagle Butte Structure. (Radon values were not reported for these wells).
  • A Geological Survey of Canada report of an exposed lignite seam within the Ravenscrag formation with a gamma ray log of 30 times background.
  • The Eagle Butte Structure is now understood and mapped as a greater than 10 km wide Late Cretaceous "Astrobleme" (meteorite impact site). This astrobleme deformed the local sandstone and shale bedrock in a large area radiating out from the site upon impact. This has created numerous faults and fractures locally with these sedimentary formations. Fractures and faults are favourable structures for the mineralization of uranium within a sandstone host as these fractures and faults may facilitate uranium ion carrying fluids to move into a suitable host sandstone for deposition.


    • Highlights for uranium exploration within these above mentioned eastern sandstone formations include:

  • A Geological Survey of Canada documented account of lignites within the Ravenscrag formation within Saskatchewan, which contained at least 0.126% (2.5 lbs/ton) U3O8.
  • A 1970 Alberta Mineral Assessment Report, which reported a 2.44 m section of carbonaceous claystone drill core with values of 0.01% U3O8.
  • Uraniferous lignites and sandstones of similar aged formations have been successfully mined within many parts of the United States and other parts of the world.
  • Many low-grade 0.15% to 0.02% sandstone-hosted uranium deposits which were too low of a grade to have been economically mined by conventional open pit or drift methods in the United States during the last Uranium Boom are now being economically mined via low impact and proven in-situ leach (water-flush) methods.


    • Historical estimate should not be relied upon.

    This Exploration project is being conducted under the direction of Glenn .S. Hartley P. Geol. in accordance with the regulations of National Instrument 43-101.

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