Alaska mining news summary: Plans under way for 2007 work

Ahhhh, the calm before the storm! Over the last month the industry slowed and took a collective breath to enjoy friends, family and the holidays in anticipation of another busy year in the Alaska mineral industry.

The last month has already seen another new player enter the Alaska mining scene and behind closed doors drilling, helicopter and personnel contracts are being negotiated.

The annual Cordilleran Roundup mining convention in Vancouver is right around the corner and promises to be the most exciting conference in over a decade. The conference is always attended by both the "who's who" of today's mining industry as well as the "who will be who" of tomorrow's mining industry. Trick is how to tell one from the other!

Western Alaska

Linux Gold reported additional results from its Granite Mountain project on the Seward Peninsula.

Samples of mineralized rocks at the surface of the Saddle Prospect yielded assays of up to 2.58 grams of gold per tonne, 250 grams of silver per tonne, and 3.0 percent combined lead and zinc. Soil samples collected on a 100 meter square grid placed over the Saddle Prospect defined a new precious metal anomaly over an area measuring 1,500 meters by 200 to 300 meters with concentrations of gold to 148 parts per billion and silver to 12.8 parts per million.

A new gold prospect was found in exposures of oxidized veins within intensely altered plutonic rocks along Quartz Creek at the north end of the claims. Grab samples of rocks, over a distance of 550 meters of exposed gossan, yielded gold values from 114 to 325 parts per billion, silver from 10.6 to 35.4 parts per million, copper to 872 parts per million and combined lead and zinc to 2.1 percent.

The Gossan Ridge soil grid was extended to the west and indicates a low-level precious metal anomaly over an area of about 1,300 meters by up to 400 meters with concentrations of gold to 66 parts per billion, silver to 9.5 parts per million, lead to 2,163 parts per million, and zinc to 3,223 parts per million. Pan concentrates collected from the head of Quartz Creek yielded visible grains of gold and values of uranium to 186.2 parts per million and thorium to 685.9 parts per million.

Significant molybdenum-uranium mineralization also was found in silicified, syenite breccia at the Peace River Prospect where rock samples gave concentrations of molybdenum from 587 to 632 parts per million, uranium from 65.8 to 131.9 parts per million and silver to 4.0 parts per million.

Pan samples of alluvial gravels within old placer workings on Dime Creek yielded grades of 1.4 to 3.5 grams of coarse gold per cubic meter. Assays of the pan concentrates yielded platinum from 0.63 to 9.23 grams per tonne and chromium to 1.2 percent. Documentation of early mining indicates that the placer gold found on Dime Creek is of unusually high purity, averaging 960 fine.

Eastern Interior

Freegold Ventures Ltd. announced additional results from bulk sampling on its Cleary Hill mine prospect on its Golden Summit project near Fairbanks. Additional results from surface exposures of the Cleary Hill vein indicated that gold mineralization extends over an area more than 100 feet wide with one channel sample taken on the bulk-sampled structure that assayed 31.0 grams per tonne over nine feet perpendicular to the strike of the vein.

Sample results from the Currey zone indicate that mineralization within the shear is fairly evenly distributed with gold grades in the 1.5 to 3 grams per tonne range. Grab samples of vein material within the polyphase shear returned up to 77 grams of gold per tonne.

Bulk samples also were collected from the Alaska, Red, D8, Blue and Wackwitz vein/shear zones where multi-gram gold grades were collected from surface exposures.

On the Colorado vein, which was exposed but not bulk sampled, a three- to 12-inch wide quartz vein which has been traced over a strike length of 580 feet with five-foot chip channel samples assaying 4.3, 34.3 and 3.9 grams of gold per tonne.

Three grab samples in the trenches assayed 16.5, 22.0 and 173 grams of gold per tonne.

Follow-up work was commenced with 5,000 feet of rotary air blast drilling in approximately 100 shallow holes. These holes will test an area extending from the northern margin of the Cleary Hill to the South vein swarm that includes the D8, Red, Blue, Wackwitz and Currey structures. Depending on results of the initial 5,000 foot program, a total of 25,000 feet of short-hole drilling may be completed.

Sumitomo Metal Mining Co. said commercial production has resumed at its Pogo gold mine in the Goodpaster district. Mine operations had been interrupted by damage to its power supply two months previously. Repairs to the facility were completed and production resumed in mid-December.

Tonogold Resources has signed two agreements with a private firm for the Rainbow-Aurora-Indian gold properties in the Goodpaster district. Structural morphology and age of the Pogo gold deposit are thought to be similar to those at Rainbow.

A north-striking, post-mineral fault offsets the low-angle mineralized faults projected between Rainbow and Pogo. The terms of the agreement provide for an advanced royalty payment due April 30, 2007, a net smelter return of 2.5 percent upon production, modest work commitments and a buyout should exploration efforts succeed.

Rimfire Minerals Corp. said Alaska-newcomer Evanachan Ltd. has signed an option agreement to explore Rimfire's Goodpaster district holdings. Rimfire has been active in the district since 1998 and in 2006 collected 243 silt, 1403 soil and 158 rock samples that will be used as a basis to target exploration in 2007.

Evanachan has agreed to fund a total of $4.8 million in exploration over six years to earn a 60 percent interest in a group of five properties. Upon vesting, Evanachan may obtain a further 10 percent interest in the properties by completing a feasibility study, may obtain an additional 5 percent interest by providing project loan financing to be repaid from Rimfire's cash flow from production.

Alaska Range

Full Metal Minerals announced additional drill results from its Lucky Shot project.

Significant results include hole C06-39 which returned 0.40 meters averaging 154.5 grams of gold per tonne, hole C06-60 which returned 4.90 meters averaging 11.6 grams of gold per tonne, hole C06-80 which returned 2.91 meters averaging 23.7 grams of gold per tonne and hole C06-81 which returned 1.70 meters averaging 82.6 grams of gold per tonne.

The most significant result from the 2006 drilling program was the discovery of the fault-offset, northern extension to the Lucky Shot shear, intersected northeast of the past-producing War Baby block. The last hole of the program, C06-89, intersected the structure 300 meters below surface, encountering 0.4 meters of 19.3 grams of gold per tonne. This intercept extends the known strike length of the Lucky Shot shear to more than 1,800 meters.

This new discovery indicates that the Lucky Shot shear is open for expansion to the west, east and north. During 2006 a total of 73 drill holes for 12,701 meters were completed on the Lucky Shot shear zone. For 2007 the company is planning a minimum 10,000 meter diamond drilling program at Lucky Shot, expected to begin in April.

Northern Alaska

Silverado Gold Mines Ltd. announced results from placer mining in the remaining underground portions of the Swede Channel on its Nolan property in the Brooks Range. The company has in excess of 8,000 loose cubic yards of pay gravel on the surface pile ready for processing in the spring.

At Mary's East prospect 9, 10 drill holes returned values greater than 0.01 troy ounces of gold per bank cubic yard, ranging from 0.03 troy ounces of gold per bank cubic yard to 1.72 troy ounces of gold per bank cubic yard.

A first phase exploration drilling program was also carried out on the company's newly acquired placer claims, in particular the Topnotch prospect. Nine holes were drilled, two of which yielded values greater than 0.01 troy ounces of gold per bank cubic yard.

Southeast Alaska

Bravo Venture Group Inc. reported continued encouraging results from surface sampling at the Woewodski Island project. The 2006 exploration program included hand trenching at the Miami Beach, Hattie and Krause's showings, followed by chip/channel and local bulk sampling of vein exposures. Closely spaced soil sampling was conducted at the Miami Beach and Matt's vein showings, and prospecting was completed on over a dozen other quartz vein showings in the project area.

Mechanical trenching was scheduled for the Matt's vein showing, where previously reported values of up to 542 grams of gold per tonne were returned from float and rubble outcrop sample.

Bulk sampling in this area will resume as soon as weather conditions allow in 2007.

Significant values from sampling on other prospects include: 14.9 grams of gold per tonne, 8.2 grams of gold per tonne and 3.2 grams of gold per tonne in grab and float vein samples from the Virginia showing; a 9.8 grams of gold per tonne grab sample from a vein at the Whiskey Pass showing; and 7.5 grams of gold per tonne from a grab sample of quartz vein and 3.0 grams of gold per tonne over 2.0 m in channel sampling from the Krause's showing.

The company also reported more than 1 gram of gold per tonne (up to 3.8 grams of gold per tonne) in 13 of 30 samples from the newly discovered Red Quartz showing in the southern part of the island.

Eight of the 13 anomalous samples returned silver values from 17.8 to 91.3 grams of silver per tonne. Gold mineralization at Red Quartz has a strong association with elevated Ag, As and Sb values, which is in sharp contrast to the relatively low values of silver and pathfinder elements typically associated with gold mineralization in the blue quartz veins. Sampling has now traced the Red Quartz vein system in float, outcrop and rubble samples along a 300 meter strike length before plunging beneath a ground cover.

Other

University of Alaska graduate Tom Albanese was recently named chief executive officer of Rio Tonto, one of the largest mining companies in the world. Tom worked his way up from a field grunt through progressively more responsible positions to take the lead reins at Rio Tinto. Congratulations Tom!

On a much sadder note, Jeff Huber, another University of Alaska graduate, was killed at a mine accident at Red Dog in December. Many of us in the mining industry in Alaska have worked with Jeff over the years and will always remember his infectious smile, his attention to detail and his contagious enthusiasm. Our condolences to Jeff's family.