Anfield Energy Completes First Underground Blast in Nearly 40 Years at Velvet-Wood Mine

Anfield Energy Inc. (AEC) announced on August 27, 2026, that it completed the first underground blast at its Velvet-Wood uranium-vanadium project in San Juan County, Utah. This marks the first underground blast at the mine in nearly 40 years, following the receipt of an ATF blast permit in June 2026.

Operational progress includes the rehabilitation of 700 feet of the decline. This work encompasses rock bolts, wire mesh, road building, mucking, surveying, mine ventilation, and utilities. Surface infrastructure, including a ventilation fan, ducting, air compressor, air line, water line, electrical power, and communications, has been installed.

Construction of the water treatment plant and installation of the dewatering pump are nearly complete. Testing and sampling of the water treatment plant are expected to begin within the coming weeks. After construction is complete, a 60-day testing and reporting period will precede the active dewatering of historic workings. Once active dewatering starts, the remaining decline is expected to dewater within three weeks, with full dewatering of existing underground workings expected to take two to three months.

The release also noted a recent site visit by Utah state and local officials, reiterating that the work supports the hub-and-spoke strategy centered on the fully permitted Shootaring Canyon Mill.

Anfield Energy Inc. (AEC) announced the commencement of its drilling and blasting campaign, an operational milestone that follows the July 7, 2026, disclosure that blasting permits had been received. The initial blast was widely anticipated given the prior timeline for activities to begin “within the coming weeks,” and the announcement contains no new market-moving information.

Management continues to target a return to production at the Velvet-Wood mine by the end of 2026. The release provided no new resource, grade, or economic data, nor did it announce any new financing, partnerships, or changes to the company’s capital structure. The stock price remained flat following the news, with the August 26 and August 27 closes both at $6.48.

The release outlined a sequence for the dewatering process: completing plant construction, followed by testing and sampling in the coming weeks, a 60-day testing and reporting period, and finally active dewatering. Full dewatering of existing workings, which typically takes two to three months, could extend into early 2027 if the 60-day period does not begin until after construction is fully complete. This timeline presents a potential risk of slippage against the year-end 2026 production target, although the company did not revise the target in this release.

Prior-period context not included in today’s release includes the June 2026 Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA), which reported a pre-tax internal rate of return (IRR) of 106%, a pre-tax net present value (NPV) of $606 million, pre-production capital expenditures of approximately $97 million, and a 1.3-year payback period. First-half 2026 financials showed a net loss of approximately $16.0 million and cash of approximately $1.8 million as of June 30, 2026, prior to the July 2026 equity raise.

Anfield Energy Inc. (AEC) is a U.S.-focused uranium and vanadium development and near-term production company. Its flagship asset is the Shootaring Canyon Mill in Utah, one of only three licensed, permitted, and constructed conventional uranium mills in the United States. The company is pursuing an upgrade from 750 tons per day to 1,000 tons per day throughput and from 1 million to 3 million pounds of U3O8 annual licensed capacity, subject to Utah regulatory approval.

Assets feeding the mill under the hub-and-spoke model include: - Velvet-Wood, Utah: past-producing mine with historic production of approximately 4 million pounds U3O8 and 5 million pounds V2O5; expedited federal permitting May 2025; Utah construction approval October 2025; Phase 1 surface construction completed June 2026; Phase 2 underground development and dewatering underway. - Slick Rock, Colorado. - West Slope mines in Colorado: JD-6, JD-7, JD-8, JD-9, SR-11, SM-18. - Marquez-Juan Tafoya, New Mexico. - Additional U.S. DOE leases.

A June 2026 Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) reported a pre-tax internal rate of return (IRR) of 106% and a pre-tax net present value (NPV) of US$606 million at an 8% discount rate. Post-tax metrics included a 97% IRR and a US$533 million NPV. The assessment outlined pre-production capital expenditures of approximately US$97 million and total life-of-mine capital expenditures of US$173 million, resulting in a 1.3-year payback period. These figures were based on assumptions of uranium at US$100 per pound and vanadium at US$9 per pound.