Exploration history of the Kvanefjeld uranium deposit, Ilimaussaq intrusion, South Greenland

The uranium deposit at Kvanefjeld is situated in the alkaline complex of Ilimaussaq in South Greenland. The deposit belongs to the category of disseminated magmatic low-grade uranium resources. The resources known at present are 27,000 tU in the class of reasonably assured resources and 16,000 tU in the class of estimated additional resources. The ore body is still open in two directions and the possibility of considerably increasing the resource figures is high. The average grade of the ore is 340 ppm U. Exploration work has reached a detailed development stage and material is at present being mined for extraction tests on the refractory ore. The exploration history dates back to the mid-1950s, and during the subsequent 25 years the deposit has been investigated with varying intensity. Yet its economic feasibility has not been proven and the decision for or against development awaits the results of the metallurgical pilot-plant tests and the solution of a number of environmental and legal questions. A lapse of three to five years is expected before a final decision can be made. The character of the exploration in the area is determined by the fact that exploration licences for radioactive materials are traditionally not given to private mining companies in Greenland. The Kvanefjeld deposit has accordingly been explored by Danish State institutions without direct commercial interest in the development; no centrally co-ordinated exploration, metallurgical and environmental study has been carried out. Progress in the exploration has therefore been largely governed by the initiatives of single institutions. (author)