The mining newspaper for Alaska and Canada's North
The mining newspaper for Alaska and Canada's North
Recent Alaska Miners Association conference was one of the most exciting and upbeat in a decade
Over the course of the last several months, a series of new gold and base metal discoveries have been made. Several of these new discoveries were reported in the last month and highlights of these and other activities were presented at the annual Alaska Miners Association convention in Anchorage in early November. The convention was one of the most exciting and up-beat events in nearly a decade.
The new discoveries are a trend that, while long in coming, are an inevitable result of the increased levels of exploration taking place in Alaska in the last 12 to 18 months.
Earlier this year, a number of companies looking for opportunities in Alaska verbalized a sentiment echoed all over North America - "Where are all the new discoveries?"
The lack of new discoveries was seemingly at odds with the significant increase in exploration that obviously was occurring.
The answer is simple: after 5 years of virtually no new exploration, it takes time for new targeting, funding and exploration activities to generate new discoveries. The recent spate of announcements detailing new discoveries tells me that more discoveries are on the way.
Western Alaska
Teck Cominco announced third quarter profits of $106 million at its Red Dog mine.
For the quarter, the mine generated 155,600 tonnes of zinc in concentrate and 28,800 tonnes of lead in concentrate.
The mine also sold 197,400 tonnes of zinc in concentrate and 56,000 tonnes of lead in concentrate.
The increased net revenue was due largely to higher zinc and lead prices which averaged 61 cents and 40 cents per pound respectively versus 45 cents and 43 cents per pound in the third quarter of 2004.
The company indicated that shipping of concentrates this season closed on October 21 and totaled 1,000,000 tonnes of zinc concentrate and 56,000 tonnes of lead concentrate.
Mill throughput was up 7 percent for the quarter but average grades mined (20.8 percent zinc and 5.7 percent lead) were down slightly over last year.
NovaGold Resources and joint venture partner Placer Dome announced drilling results from its Donlin Creek project.
Results were derived from 27,000 meters of core and reverse circulation drilling designed to upgrade inferred gold resources to measured and indicated gold resources and to complete geotechnical and condemnation drilling for mine planning.
Significant results include DC05-1033 with 4 mineralized intervals totaling 90 meters grading 6.4 grams of gold per tonne including 70 meters grading 7.4 grams of gold per tonne.
DC05-1063 returned 7 mineralized intervals totaling 103.4 meters grading 6.7 grams of gold per tonne including intervals of 12 meters grading 16.3 grams of gold per tonne and 20.7 meters of 7.9 grams of gold per tonne.
DC05-1065 returned 9 mineralized intervals totaling 258.2 meters grading 5 grams of gold per tonne including intervals of 25 meters grading 10.2 grams of gold per tonne, 29.7 meters of 7.1 grams of gold per tonne, and 65.9 meters of 5.8 grams of gold per tonne.
DC05-1018 intercepted 8 mineralized intervals totaling 277.5 meters grading 3.59 grams of gold per tonne including intervals of 64.7 meters grading 5.4 grams of gold per tonne and 28.3 meters of 5.9 grams of gold per tonne.
High-grade mineralization remains open at depth within the Acma and Lewis deposits.
Data from drilling and geotechnical studies will be incorporated into continuing feasibility study efforts due for completion in 2006.
Northern Dynasty Minerals Ltd. announced additional high-grade intercepts in the newly defined East zone at its Pebble deposit near Iliamna.
Hole 5330 entered the mineralized system at a vertical depth of 1620 feet below surface.
This hole intersected 2342 feet grading 1.36 percent copper equivalent comprising 0.99 percent copper, 0.26 grams gold per tonne and 0.036 percent molybdenum.
The bottom 100 feet of the hole grades 1.67 percent copper equivalent including 1.18 percent copper, 0.26 grams gold per tonne and 0.057 percent molybdenum.
Hole 5332 intersected 2367 feet grading 1.41 percent copper equivalent comprising 0.89 percent copper, 0.33 grams gold per tonne and 0.055 percent molybdenum.
Included in this intersection is an 817 foot interval grading 1.74 percent copper equivalent comprised of 1.28 percent copper, 0.28 grams gold per tonne and 0.050 percent molybdenum.
Liberty Star Gold Corp. announced completion of field work at its Big Chunk copper-gold prospect near Iliamna. For the season the company completed 99 line miles of induced polarization geophysical surveys and collected 1,702 vegetation samples on 600-foot intervals over 147 miles of grid. The company has completed 10,948 feet of diamond core drilling in 27 holes on the project. Results have not been released.
Liberty Star Gold Corp. also announced acquisition of 23.5 square miles of new mining claims on the Bonanza Hills project. This area consists of a granitic stock intrusive into Cretaceous age sediments. Preliminary samples from this new discovery show strongly anomalous gold with values up to 3.11 ounces of gold per ton. Gold is associated with quartz veins. Previous placer workings are found in one area. Strong alteration is present over a large area and additional stream sediment sampling has been done in order to identify source areas of gold mineralization. Results are pending.
TNR Gold Corp. ("TNR") announced discovery of a new zone of gold mineralization at its Shotgun project in southwest Alaska.
Results from six drill holes (1754.3 meters) in the Winchester zone spread more than 1000 meters apart returned anomalous gold values including hole DDH05-32 which was collared in medium grained felsic intrusive that averaged 1.60 grams of gold per tonne over 14.3 meters (including 3.93 grams of gold per tonne over 2.13 meters) from surface to the contact with Kuskokwim group sediments.
DDH05-31 intercepted felsic intrusive containing 1.03 grams of gold per tonne over 2.3 meters.
Gold anomalies in these holes were associated with anomalous arsenic, bismuth, copper and tungsten.
Follow-up drilling is planned for 2006.
Full Metal Minerals and Fury Explorations Ltd. announced discovery of gold mineralization at their Ganes Creek project in southwest Alaska.
Seven holes were completed totaling 1,248 meters.
Four different zones were targeted, spanning 2,800 meter of strike length proximal to the Yankee-Ganes fault zone.
Significant gold mineralization was encountered at the Katz Zone in hole GC05-54 which intersected 15.2 meters averaging 2.5 grams of gold per tonne, including 7.6 meters averaging 4.5 grams of gold per tonne.
Mineralization encountered at the Katz Zone is typified by felsic and mafic dikes intruding hornfelsed sediments.
Variable quartz stockwork and sulfide mineralization occurs throughout hole GC05-54, suggesting a strong hydrothermal system in this area.
Additional drilling in 2006 will step-out from this intercept and will be focused on locating the source of the high-grade gold-quartz cobbles common in placer gold operations on the project.
Linux Gold Corp. announced results from geologic mapping and geochemical sampling on the Kiwalik and Peace claim blocks on its Granite Mountain project on the Seward Peninsula.
Geochemical sampling included 153 soil samples, 93 rock samples, 45 stream sediment samples, and 31 pan concentrate samples.
Results from the Kiwalik claims indicate a north-trending mineralized trend over an 11 kilometer strike that is spatially associated with the eastern contact of the Quartz Creek quartz monzonite pluton and andesitic flows and volcaniclastic country rock.
At Kiwalik highlights include 52.3 grams of silver per tonne, over 10,000 parts per million lead, over 10,000 parts per million zinc, 1,256 parts per million copper, 704 parts per million antimony and 83 parts per billion gold.
Precious metal zones were sampled with a soil grid placed on veined, brecciated, and oxidized volcanic rock, as well as with grab samples of veined and intensely altered intrusive rock, resulting in concentrations of up to 0.26 grams of gold per tonne, 29.2 grams of silver per tonne, over 10,000 parts per million arsenic and elevated levels of lead, copper, and antimony.
A similar linear trend was detected on the Peace claims, where mineralization was found within plutonic (syenite) bedrock over a strike length of 1.7 kilometers.
Results include 4.3 grams of gold per tonne, 0.15 percent tungsten, and 230 parts per million uranium in pan samples and concentrations of up to 0.20 grams of gold per tonne, 83.5 grams of silver per tonne, 0.12 percent molybdenum, 6,327 parts per million copper, 1,232 parts per million antimony and elevated lead, bismuth and tungsten in rock grab samples.
Additional work is planned for 2006.
Tonogold Resources Inc. released final 2005 results from its Nyac gold project in southwest Alaska.
Sampling included over 3,000 soil and 200 rock samples within approximately six square miles.
The assay results revealed six gold prospects with disseminated gold potential.
Five of these prospects; Bonanza Ridge, Rocky Ridge, Shamrock, Pipe and Wallace are located within a contiguous area of five square miles in the central part of the project.
The sixth prospect, Saddle Mountain, covers an area of about one square mile to the northeast.
All six prospects identified in 2005 had numerous assays over 0.5 grams gold per tonne and multiple returns over 1 grams gold per tonne.
Highest soil assay reported was 4.21 grams gold per tonne.
Highest rock value is 15.1 grams gold per tonne.
Diamond drilling is planned for 2006.
Eastern Interior
Hard as it may be to believe, Kinross Gold finally announced preliminary corporate results for 2004 (yes 2004) that included results from its Fort Knox operations in Fairbanks.
Gold equivalent ounces produced in 2004 declined by 14 percent to 338,334 ounces as a result of the decision to defer production from the higher grade True North deposit for the first half of 2004.
The decrease in ore milled in 2004 was also the result of harder ore from the Fort Knox pit being processed through the mill for the first six months, compared with the blended ore from True North and Fort Knox for the full year in 2003.
A slight decrease in total cash costs to $254 per ounce reflects the suspension of mining at True North for the latter half of 2004.
The decrease in costs was offset by higher reagent costs and higher labor costs, as increased manpower was required to operate a larger fleet, which included the addition of larger capacity mining equipment.
Production in 2005 is forecast to be slightly lower compared to 2004 as a result of lower grades, partially offset by improved recovery rates.
Exploration in and around the current pit at Fort Knox included 10,375 meters of new drilling that indicates mineralization remains open to the south and northeast.
Additional drilling was conducted in 2005 to resolve this.
Teryl Resources and partner Kinross Gold announced drilling results from the Sourdough Ridge zone on its Gil joint venture claims in Fairbanks. The program consisted of 1,560 feet of reverse circulation drilling in 9 holes. Significant results include hole GRV05-490 which intercepted 30 feet grading 2.56 grams of gold per tonne, hole GRV05-491 which intercepted 30 feet grading 4.32 grams of gold per tonne, GRV05-493 which intercepted 10 feet grading 5.12 grams of gold per tonne. Additional drilling is planned once winter conditions set in.
Freegold Ventures announced completion of a trenching program on its Golden Summit project in the Fairbanks District.
A series of six trenches (1,270 feet total) were excavated and sampled over an area approximately 400 to 1,400 feet to the south of the Cleary Hill Mine.
A total of 248 rock chip samples were collected on 1.5-foot sample intervals along the trench floor.
Sampling along the strike of the exposed Wackwitz vein generated 9 chip samples using 5 foot spacing.
An additional 31 grab samples were also taken from selected veins.
The trenching program extended the known strike length of the high-grade Wackwitz vein (an 18 inch quartz vein with grab samples of 2.9, 3.2 and 12.5 ounces of gold per ton) that was encountered at surface to the west in the 2002 trenching program.
The trenching extended the strike extension of the Wackwitz vein an additional 230 feet to the east.
Assay results are pending.
Teck Cominco and partner Sumitomo Metal Mines announced that construction at the Pogo mine is 85 percent complete at the end of September and is on schedule for a first quarter 2006 start-up.
Commissioning of some of the process systems has begun and ore is being placed on stockpile for the start-up.
Estimated final cost for the project has increased to $347 million due to increased construction and labor costs and unanticipated geotechnical conditions both on surface and underground.
Underground development is behind schedule due to poor ground conditions in some areas that have caused a change of location of the underground ore bin and reduced the overall rate of advance.
This will affect only the start-up of the underground conveyor system, not the overall mine startup, as trucking of ore to the mill will be used until the conveyor system is completed in the first quarter of 2006.
AngloGold Ashanti announced a new discovery at its LMS project 15 kilometers northeast of Delta Junction.
Phase I drilling has intersected a shallow, west dipping, high grade vein system hosted in metamorphic rocks.
The mineralization has textural and geochemical similarities to the Pogo deposit 40 kilometers to the north.
Results to date show a broad lower grade system at surface, grading into a high-grade vein at depth with deeper intercepts ranging in grade from 15 to 20 grams of gold per tonne over ~3 meters.
The best drill intercept to date was 3.4 meters grading 21.5 grams of gold per tonne.
Further exploration on the project will focus on the down dip extension of the system and assessment of a possible second zone at depth (1.5 meters grading 35.4 grams of gold per tonne).
Select Resources Corp. announced discovery of two new gold-bearing zones at its Richardson gold property near Delta Junction. A total of 556 auger soil samples were collected from an irregularly shaped zone about 8 kilometers long and approximately 0.5 to 1.5 kilometers wide. The soil survey identified at least two new prospects along the trend where anomalous gold is associated with silver, bismuth, and arsenic. Additional soil surveys and drilling are planned for 2006.
Alaska Range
Nevada Star Resource Corp. announced results from copper-gold exploration at its MAN Alaska project in the central Alaska Range.
The maximum assays for samples collected in 2005 were 2.06 percent copper at the Gezzi prospect, 7.22 grams of gold per tonne at the Broxson Ridge prospect and 42.1 grams of silver per tonne at the Broxson Ridge prospect.
Gold at Broxson Ridge is hosted in altered clastic sedimentary rock near a feldspar-phyric granitoid dike.
Nearby samples from along a strike length of approximately 1000 meters through the Broxson Ridge prospect contain up to 1.78 percent copper and 4.95 grams of gold per tonne.
The other samples were from strongly altered and brecciated picrite 4 kilometers to the east at the Specimen prospect and altered gabbro 6 kilometers east at the Gezzi prospect.
The company also obtained core drilling data from a previous explorer, which includes assay results for the five drill holes at the Gezzi prospect completed in 1974.
Highlights of this data set include intercepts of 1.31 percent copper over 9 meters and 0.71 percent copper over 21 meters in two separate holes collared in a mineralized trench on the west side of the prospect, and 0.7 percent copper over 8 meters in a third hole collared in a second mineralized trench 300 meters to the east.
Gold and silver assays were not conducted on the 1974 drill hole samples.
Follow-up work is planned for 2006.
Piper Capital Inc. announced final drilling results from the Golden Zone gold project in the Alaska Range.
A total of 3,180 meters of drilling was completed in 19 core holes and one reverse circulation drill hole in 2005.
Significant results include intercepts grading 2.02 grams of gold per tonne over 41.3 meters and 1.08 grams of gold per tonne over 33.5 meters in Hole 50.5E-1 at respective depths of 99 and 190.5 meters within the GZ Breccia Pipe.
Hole 61E-1, located within the Mayflower Zone 300 meters northeast of the GZ Breccia Pipe, intercepted 1 gram of gold per tonne over 4.5 meters at a depth of 27 meters and Hole 43.3E-1, located in the BLT Zone 100 meters to the southwest of the GZ Breccia Pipe, intercepted 1.09 grams of gold per tonne over 7.5 meters at a depth of 67 meters.
Following receipt of these results 4 additional holes were drilled in the GS Breccia Pipe and returned significant mineralized intervals in all four holes, with the largest intercepts in hole 47.3E-2.
This hole encountered a 124.4 meter intercept grading 4.5 grams of gold per tonne including a 5.1 meter intercept grading 19.74 grams of gold per tonne, 87 grams of silver per tonne, and 0.22 percent copper.
Upgraded resources calculations will be done for the project.
AngloGold Ashanti announced results from exploration on its Terra project in the western Alaska Range. The project contains a number of high-grade gold bearing veins within a structural system that is over 5 kilometers in length. Phase I drilling intersected numerous veins having widths of 0.3 to 5.2 meters with grades ranging from 9 to 140 grams of gold per tonne. The best intercept was 1.1 meters grading 140.4 grams of gold per tonne with 268 grams of silver per tonne. The Terra veins are characterized as banded, epithermal type with an associated arsenic-bismuth-tellurium signature and coarse visible gold. Additional work is planned.
MAX Resource Corp. announced that it has completed additional geochemical sampling and data compilation on its Gold Hill project in the Valdez Creek district.
Previous work included efforts by Dome Mines Ltd., Cities Services Minerals, GCO Minerals of Houston, Texas, Amax Exploration Inc. and Hemlo Gold Mines (USA).
At least 2,550 soil samples, 239 rock samples and 1,905 drill samples have been collected and an unknown number of channel samples taken from 2,900 feet of trenches.
The best drill results to date came from hole DDH 77-2 which intersected quartz-molybdenum plus or minus pyrite from surface to 536 feet which graded 0.048 percent molybdenum sulfide with a higher grade interval from 350-500 of 0.094 percent molybdenum sulfide.
This area has never been followed up with modern exploration and contains a significant magnetic anomaly that coincides with the mineralization.
This area will be explored in 2006.
Grayd Resource Corp. announced sampling across a zone of precious-metal enriched mineralization at its wholly-owned Delta volcanogenic massive sulfide property in the east-central Alaska Range.
Two channel samples across a zone of mineralized chlorite schist recently exposed by a receding glacier averaged 3 meters grading 6.1 grams of gold per tonne, 374.8 grams of silver per tonne, 0.4 percent copper and 14.8 percent lead and 0.6 meters grading 4.7 grams of gold per tonne, 547.3 grams of silver per tonne, 0.4 percent copper and 22.6 percent lead.
The nine 0.2 to 0.5 meter long channel samples collected returned assays from 2.85 grams of gold per tonne to 7.53 grams of gold per tonne and 317 grams of silver per tonne to 619 grams of silver per tonne.
Mineralization is open laterally beyond the areas sampled.
The thickness of mineralization is unknown.
It is believed that the zone represents the footwall of a zone drilled in the 1990's known as the LP VMS Zone, which crops out 200 meters to the west of the new samples.
The company is seeking joint venture partners to assist in exploring the project.
Southeastern Alaska
Kennecott (70.3 percent) and Hecla (29.7 percent) announced third quarter 2005 production from the Greens Creek mine on Admiralty Island.
The total cash cost per ounce of silver at Greens Creek for the quarter was $3.05, a significant increase over third quarter of 2004 costs of $1.55 per ounce.
The increase in cost is due to rising energy, fuel, supplies and labor costs, as well as ground support rehabilitation efforts in the main haulage ways during the third quarter.
The average grade of ore mined during the quarter was 15.37 ounces of silver per ton.
During the third quarter the mine produced 1,869,179 ounces of silver, 14,951 ounces of gold, 4,554 tons of lead and 14,113 tons of zinc.
Total production costs for the quarter were $5.87 per ounce of silver produced versus $3.58 per ounce for the third quarter of 2004.
Underground definition, pre-production, in-stope, mine-operation and exploration drilling at Greens Creek for the year has totaled more than 78,000 feet, with nearly 30,000 feet of that solely dedicated to new exploration.
The majority of this drilling was conducted in the recently discovered West Gallagher zone.
Quaterra Resources announced results from a 7 hole, 4,505 foot drilling program at its Duke Island copper - nickel - platinum group element project near Ketchikan.
Hole DK0506 at the previously undrilled Raven zone contains the thickest interval of continuous copper mineralization drilled on the property to date, with the interval from 8 to 395 feet averaging 2,035 ppm copper, 56 parts per billion platinum and 59 parts per billion palladium.
The 42-foot interval from 33 to 75 feet averages 0.38 percent copper and 644 parts per billion platinum plus palladium.
Structural and/or stratigraphic controls for mineralization are poorly understood due to limited bedrock exposures and limited drilling on the property to date (total of 11 holes, 5,972 feet).
Additional work is planned for 2006.
Curt is President of Avalon Development Corporation, a mineral exploration consulting firm based in Fairbanks, Alaska. He is a U.S. Certified Professional Geologist with the American Institute of Professional Geologists (CPG #6901) and is a licensed geologist in the State of Alaska (Lic. # AA 159).
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