North Arrow grows Mel to blanket diamond find

North Arrow Minerals Inc. Jan. 22 reported that it has significantly expanded its Mel property in Nunavut to encompass a new diamond-bearing kimberlite field it discovered last year.

During its 2017 exploration at Mel, North Arrow discovered ML-8 kimberlite near the up-ice termination of a well-defined kimberlite indicator mineral (KIM) train in the northern part of the project area. A 62.1-kilogram sample of this kimberlite returned 23 diamonds larger than the 0.106-millimeter sieve size, including one colorless diamond larger than the 0.85 mm.

"The ML-8 kimberlite discovery is a highlight of North Arrow's 2017 exploration programs," said North Arrow President and CEO Ken Armstrong.

Following the September discovery, the company expanded Mel from 56,075 hectares (138,565 acres), a more than seven-fold increase from the 7,500 hectares (18,530 acres) of lands that previously made up the project.

"The expanded Mel Project connects the Mel North area with the Mel South KIM anomaly, approximately 15 kilometers southwest of the ML-8 kimberlite discovery," said Armstrong. "Mel is highly prospective for additional kimberlite and diamond discoveries in 2018 with exploration work, including drilling, scheduled to commence in May."

North Arrow said this drilling will focus on defining the ML-8 kimberlite, as well as testing a series of targets at the head of three well defined KIM trains in the Mel North area.

In the meantime, the company is carrying out a study of till (glacial sediments) and other glacial deposits intended to better understand the glacial geology and terrain within the expanded project, in particular the central project area between the Mel North and Mel South KIM trains. This central area has seen very little previous till sampling and is interpreted as having a complex glacial history. Results from the study will be used to plan a follow up till sampling program during the summer of 2018 to better define the Mel South KIM train and to identify new KIM targets within the property.

In addition to drilling at Mel, North Arrow plans to complete spring drilling at its Loki and Lac de Gras diamond projects in Northwest Territories.

The company is also awaiting diamond results from a 210-metric-ton mini-bulk sample collected from the Q1-4 kimberlite at Naujaat, the company's flagship property in Nunavut.

–SHANE LASLEY