The mining newspaper for Alaska and Canada's North

Mining Explorers 2014: Banks Island Gold Ltd.

boZ: TSX-V

President and CEO: Benjamin Mossman

Chairman: Wolfgang Nickel

Chief Geologist: Dirk Meckert

Banks Island Gold Ltd. is on the cusp of transitioning from explorer to producer.

Organized in 2010 by partners Ben Mossman and Jason Nickel, Banks Island is already enjoying income from gold recovered from bulk sampling the high-grade Bob zone at its Yellow Giant gold-silver property on Banks Island.

From the first shipment of gold concentrates from the bulk sample program in February through June 10, the company reports that 7,145 ounces of gold and 18,559 ounces silver contained in concentrate shipped from Bob zone.

The average mill grade of Bob zone bulk sample material through mid-July was 21 grams per metric ton gold and 51 g/t silver.

Banks Island is planning for a seamless transition from bulk sampling to commercial production at Yellow Giant.

In March, the company was issued a mines act permit that allows the construction of a 200-ton-per-day grinding and flotation plant, an underground mine at the Tel zone, and associated facilities including rock stockpiles and other infrastructure.

Banks Island reports that the implementation of grinding and flotation circuits, which the company began commissioning in August, has resulted in a dramatic improvement in metallurgical gold recoveries from previous dense media separation plant production.

The average gold grade of final tailings from the expanded recovery circuit through Aug. 26 was less than 1 g/t gold resulting in a concentrate grade averaging 64 g/t gold.

While bringing the recovery circuit online, Banks Island continued to enjoy exploration success at Yellow Giant.

Early in 2014, the company said it had cut 11.9 grams per metric ton gold, 118 g/t silver, and 6.8 percent copper over 3.6 meters (2.3 meters estimated true width) in hole BOB-13-32.

This vein intercept is about 60 meters below the Bob zone resources.

The biggest discovery, however, came near Quartz Hill, situated about 4.5 kilometers (2.8 miles) southeast of the Bob zone.

QH-14-01 - the first hole drilled into a 600-meter-long gold-silver-arsenic soil anomaly near Quartz Hill - returned results of 14 g/t gold over 2.3 meters inside a larger mineralized intercept of 2.5 g/t gold over 14.5 meters.

Company geologists believe this block acted as a significant fluid trap in the contact zone with the quartz monzonite to the northeast.

Banks Island geologists believe this discovery has the potential to develop into a mineralized zone and are working on plans to explore the Quartz Hill area.

Cash and short-term deposits: C$193,060 (May 31, 2014)

Working capital: C$5.6 million deficit (May 31, 2014; closed C$4.0 million financing July 7, 2014 and C$1.3 million financing Sept. 17, 2014)

Market capitalization: C$18.9 million (Oct. 8, 2014)

300-1055 W Hastings Street • Vancouver, B.C.

Canada V6E 2E9

Tel: 604-245-0066 • http://www.banksislandgold.com

 

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