Rare earths, uranium firm gives up on Nunavut

Troymet’s rare earth and uranium property is marked near the top of this map.

A small junior exploration firm called Troymet Exploration Corp. is winding up its rare earth and uranium project in Nunavut, the company reported Dec. 8.

“The project is no longer considered core to Troymet’s business as the company seeks to further control costs,” Troymet said in a news release.

The company’s property, called “Thelon,” is located about 150 kilometres northwest of Baker Lake and about 90 km northwest of Areva’s Kiggavik uranium project, near an area called the Thelon Basin, believed to contain many uranium deposits.

But Troymet said they were more interested in the area’s rare earth potential.

Rare earths are a collection of difficult-to-find metals that are used in lasers, cell phones, batteries, spark plugs, lenses and numerous high-tech devices.

Troymet said the company did sampling work that confirmed “a full range” of rare earth elements in their Thelon property.

The company said it’s open to “an acquisition or a potential transaction at a future date, depending on market conditions.”

But right now, Troymet’s stock, which trades on the TSX Venture Exchange, is virtually worthless.

As of Dec. 1, it was trading at less than one cent a share, with a 52-week high of only three cents a share.

The company is still hanging on to gold and base metal properties in British Columbia and Manitoba.