Alaska hums with 'over abundance' of news

As is commonly the case in late January, an over abundance of news has come out in the last month, in part to coincide with year-end financial releases and in part to coincide with the annual Cordilleran Roundup mining convention in Vancouver. The news itself included an $819 million year-end 2007 profit at one Alaska mine, new gold resources of 32.8 million ounces for the state's largest gold deposit and the sale of 70 percent of another mine for a whopping $750 million. That doesn't count new resource estimates on two other gold projects and multimillion-dollar exploration programs announced at several other projects. Other than that, not much going on …

Western Alaska

Teck Cominco American announced stellar fourth-quarter and year-end 2007 results from its Red Dog mine in Northwest Alaska.

In the fourth quarter the mine produced 134,600 metric tons of zinc in concentrate and for the year the mine produced 575,000 metric tons of zinc in concentrate.

Zinc ore grade increased to 20.1 percent, while mill recoveries were steady at 80 percent for the fourth quarter.

The mine also produced 36,000 metric tons of lead in concentrate during the fourth quarter and 136,000 metric tons of lead in concentrate for the year.

Lead ore grade decreased to 6.6 percent, while mill recoveries decreased to 60.9 percent for the fourth quarter.

The mine posted a healthy $174 million operating profit for the quarter and an $819 million operating profit for the year, both significantly down from the $623 million and $1.079 billion operating profits reported from fourth-quarter 2006 and year-end 2006, respectively.

During the final three months of 2007, the mine paid JV partner NANA Inc. $68 million in royalties.

NovaGold Resources announced that measured and indicated resources for the Donlin Creek gold project have increased by 77 percent to 29.4 million ounces of gold, compared to the previous resource estimate of 16.6 million ounces published in September 2006.

The new resource estimate includes an additional 135,000 meters of drilling from 359 holes, incorporating all of the 2006 drill program and roughly 72 percent of the 2007 drill program.

The new measured and indicated resources stand at 371.7 million metric tons grading 2.46 grams of gold per metric ton for 29.38 million ounces of gold.

Inferred resources added an additional 46.5 million metric tons grading 2.31 grams of gold per metric ton, or 3.46 million ounces.

The new estimates include data from 402,000 meters, or 1.3 million feet, of drilling on the property.

Pacific North West Capital and joint venture partner Stillwater Mining announced assay results from the 2007 Goodnews Bay Platinum Project.

Outcrop sampling returned results up to 2.27 parts-per-million platinum.

Clusters of outcrop samples greater than 100 parts-per-billion platinum are located on both Red Mountain and Susie Mountain.

Assay results from basal soil samples range from below detection to 432 parts-per-billion platinum, with a cluster of samples with greater than 50 parts-per-billion platinum located at the SW flank of Susie Mountain.

Elevated platinum values were found in association with both chromite and magnetite.

Based on assay results from 2006-2007 grab rock outcrop samples and basal soil samples, three prospects (Last Chance, Susie West, and Rock Mite) have been delineated as drill targets for a $1 million 2008 exploration program.

International Tower Hill Mines announced the first-ever resource estimate for its Terra gold project in the western Alaska Range. The independent study determined an initial inferred resource estimate of 168,000 ounces gold and 318,000 ounces silver at an average grade of 12.2 grams per metric ton gold and 23.1 g/t silver (2-to-1 silver-to-gold ratio) over an average width of 2.3 meters at a cutoff grade of 5 g/t gold. The study indicated that the Ben vein system, on which the resource was based, showed good continuity and remained open to depth and along strike. Preliminary metallurgical tests indicate high gravity recovery rates.

Alix Resources Corp. and joint venture partner Millrock Resources announced 2008 plans at the Divide gold project near Nome. Exploration plans include reverse circulation drilling, HQ core drilling, stripping of areas of high-grade surface showings and bulk sampling.

Triex Minerals Corp. announced plans to conduct 1,200 meters of drilling on its Fireweed prospect at the Boulder Creek uranium project on the Seward Peninsula. Details of the program were not announced.

Alix Resources Corp. announced that it had acquired a 100 percent interest in the Kamishak copper-gold project from Full Metal Minerals Ltd. Terms include payment of 750,000 shares over a period of three years to Full Metal, 100,000 shares to underlying owner Alaska Earth Science with a further 500,000 shares upon completion of a feasibility study and $60,000 to be paid to Alaska Earth Science in cash over 3 years.

Concurrent with this arrangement, Andover Ventures Inc. will retain a 20 percent interest in the property.

Terms of the deal call for Andover to spend an amount proportionate to Alix spending the first $1 million.

Induced polarization and resistivity surveys completed in 2007 detected significant anomalous zones outside of previously drilled areas.

The work program for 2008 will include additional geophysical surveys followed by drilling of newly developed targets.

Alix Resources Corp. also announced 2008 plans for its Alaska Peninsula Project. At the KUY prospect, a work program will include geologic mapping and additional induced polarization and resistivity surveying, while at the Fog Lake prospect, the company plans to conduct induced polarization and resistivity work along with diamond drilling.

Eastern Interior

Teck Cominco and joint venture partner Sumitomo Metal Mining announced fourth-quarter and year-end 2007 results from the Pogo mine. The mine produced 80,900 ounces of gold in the fourth quarter and 259,800 ounces during 2007. Average grade mined in the fourth quarter was 15.7 g/t gold with mill recovery of 87.6 percent. Total cash operating costs for the fourth quarter were $514 an ounce. The mine turned a $5 million profit in the fourth quarter. Despite improvements over third-quarter results, the mine remains below full capacity due to poor equipment availability and mill throughput, Teck Cominco said. Projected 2008 production is 340,000 to 360,000 ounces.

International Tower Hill Mines announced a first-ever resource estimate for the Camp Zone deposit at its LMS project near Delta Junction.

The study determined an initial inferred gold resource of 167,000 ounces of gold at an average grade of 0.89 g/t at a cutoff grade of 0.3 g/t.

Due to the wide-spaced nature of the drilling, much of the high-grade mineralization, ranging from 3 g/t to 121 g/t gold, could not be accurately modeled and was therefore excluded from the resource estimate.

International Tower Hill said the resource estimate included results from 24 drill holes covering 250 meters of strike length and 590 meters downdip.

The main mineralized zone is a 1 to 5-meter thick, shallowly-dipping, tabular zone of siliceous breccia and graphitic schist hosted in a mica schist sequence.

The primary ore controls appear to be a combination of favorable host alteration zones and deep-seated feeder structures.

The zone remains open to the north and west.

Teryl Resources announced plans for a drill program at its Fish Creek Gold Project in the Fairbanks District to test several geophysical anomalies. A geophysical survey completed by Fugro Airborne Surveys, Inc. has identified six gold targets at Fish Creek.

International Tower Hill Mines also announced plans for a $7.2 million, 50,000-meter reverse circulation and core drilling program at its Livengood Gold Project north of Fairbanks.

Drilling is scheduled to begin in May and continue through the end of the year, using up to three rigs.

Drilling results to date have outlined an open-ended zone of gold mineralization about 2 kilometers, or 1.24 miles, long and more than a half- kilometer wide, with an average mineralization thickness of 85 meters of greater than 0.25 g/t gold, averaging 0.85 g/t gold.

Mineralization is stratabound, primarily hosted in a folded sequence of volcanics and calcareous sediments.

Based on the 2007 results, International Tower Hill has outlined a drill program of about 150 holes designed to significantly expand the known mineralized zone.

In addition, the junior plans to expand its ongoing metallurgical testing and begin environmental baseline studies.

The company plans to structure the drilling program so it can be continued into 2009 on a year-round basis.

Full Metal Minerals announced final assay results from the LWM prospect on its 40 Mile Project.

Results include the highest grade mineralization yet encountered on the property.

Hole LWM07-19 intersected 126.5 meters averaging 10.8 percent zinc, 2.0 percent lead and 30.7 grams of silver per metric ton, including: 5.64 meters averaging 19.9 percent zinc, 31.8 percent lead and 346.8 grams of silver per metric ton.

Hole LWM07-21 intersected 10.7 meters averaging 5.5 percent zinc, 7.6 percent lead and 110.3 grams of silver per metric ton.

Massive sphalerite, galena, and chalcopyrite mineralization has been encountered over 300 meters of strike length and greater than 200 meters below surface.

Mineralization remains open for expansion in all directions.

In 2008 the company will complete a 15,000-meter core drilling program, conduct additional surface sampling and complete geophysical surveys at the project.

Drilling is expected to commence in mid-March and will include infill and step-out holes at LWM, as well as testing of the Eva, Oscar and Drumstick targets, which have not yet been drilled.

Millrock Resources Inc. announced that it has acquired three claim blocks in the Fortymile Mining District. Millrock is targeting disseminated and vein-style intrusion-related lode gold deposits in the area. Limited rock sampling from the project has returned values up to 3.54 g/t gold. Stream sediment sampling of one of the properties defined a multi sample gold and arsenic stream sediment anomaly that will be targeted for grid sampling follow-up work in 2008.

Northern Alaska

Little Squaw Gold Mines reported additional alluvial drilling results from its Little Squaw gold project in the Brooks Range. The company drilled a total of 111 holes on the property during the 2007 summer field season, 99 of which were completed to targeted depths. Seventy-three of these holes intersected mineralized gravel averaging $14.85 per cubic yard in gold over a thickness of 83 feet using a gold price of $600 per ounce. The company is conducting preliminary economic assessments and completing resource estimates to help it determine how best to proceed.

Southeast Alaska

The biggest news of the month was the acquisition by Hecla Mining of Kennecott's 70.3 percent interest in the Greens Creek Mine near Juneau. The $750 million acquisition brings Hecla's interest in the mine to 100 percent. The company also announced that for 2007 the mine produced 8.6 million ounces of gold, 68,000 ounces of silver, 63,000 tons of zinc and 21,000 tons of lead. Total average cash cost for 2007 was a negative $5.27 per ounce of silver produced. As Sam Spade would say, "That's a lot of dough, baby!"

Niblack Mining Corp. announced that underground exploration has resumed on the Niblack gold-silver-copper-zinc project.

Drill crews have mobilized back to the property to continue the 9,000-meter phase one underground drill program.

The underground has advanced 208 meters from the portal entrance and is advancing at the rate of 4.8 meters per day.

Ground conditions continue to be very good with limited rock bolting required.

The underground program will consist of up to 1,800 meters of tunnel development providing access to areas beneath gold-rich base metal mineralization defined at the Lookout Zone and to allow exploration along the North Limb target.

Underground access to the Trio Zone also could be achieved by extending one of the exploration drifts currently under construction at the Lookout Zone by 360 meters.

Drilling along the North Limb is now under way and will be followed by drilling at Lookout.

The company also reported additional results from the 2007 drilling program including 6.28 meters grading 2.15 grams of gold per metric ton, 20 grams of silver per metric ton, 0.59 percent copper, 4.31 percent zinc in hole LO-207 from the Trio zone and stockwork mineralization at the Dama zone grading 0.54 percent copper over 18.18 meters, and 0.34 meters of massive sulfide grading 2.2 g/t gold, 71 g/t silver, 10.8 percent copper, and 8.18 percent zinc.

Pure Nickel Inc. announced approval of drilling permits on its Salt Chuck copper - palladium project near Hollis. The drilling phase of the exploration program originally planned for November was delayed due to the permitting process. Drilling can be carried out year round at Salt Chuck, and the company is determining the optimal time to conduct the drilling in 2008.