The mining newspaper for Alaska and Canada's North
The mining newspaper for Alaska and Canada's North
Spring drilling cuts massive sulfide zones below Ferguson Lake North of 60 Mining News – June 2, 2023
Snow train delivers supplies for 2023 exploration at Canadian North's Ferguson Lake nickel-copper-cobalt-PGM project.
Dashed ovals mark the target areas for the 2023 drill program at Canadian North's Ferguson Lake nickel-copper-cobalt-platinum group metals project in Nunavut.
Canadian North Resources Inc. May 29 reported encouraging results from its recently completed 21-hole spring diamond drill program at its Ferguson Lake nickel-copper-cobalt-platinum group metals project in Nunavut's Kivalliq region.
According to a 2022 calculation, Ferguson Lake hosts 24.3 million metric tons of indicated resource averaging 0.85% (455.4 million pounds) copper, 0.6% (296.3 million lb) nickel, 0.07% (37.5 million lb) cobalt, 1.38 grams per metric ton (1.08 million oz) palladium, and 0.23 g/t (180,000 oz) platinum; plus 47.2 million metric tons of inferred resource averaging 0.91% (946.9 million lb) copper, 0.53% (551.5 million lb) nickel, 0.06% (62.4 million lb) cobalt, 1.4 g/t (2.12 million oz) palladium, and 0.25 g/t (380,000 oz) platinum.
Canadian North reports that all 68 holes drilled last year – 27 infill and 41 step-out holes – cut mineralization in the East and West zones of a mineralized horizon that extends for roughly 15,000 meters along strike.
The purpose of the spring on-ice program was to test the main mineralized horizon trending across Ferguson Lake. This drilling focused on defining East Zone 1 and extending it to the west, as well as extending the West Zone further east to join it with Central Zone under the lake.
Canadian North Resources Vice President of Exploration says 17 out of the 21 holes drilled from atop the frozen Ferguson Lake cut massive sulfide mineralization, as well as intersecting a parallel trend of disseminated massive sulfides about 200 meters south of Central Zone.
"This encouraging second zone has been identified as a separate target from the compilation and re-plotting of an interpreted historic airborne VTEM conductor. It will be followed up with additional drill testing during the summer using a nearby island as a platform," he said.
Canadian North has paused drilling for the spring break-up of ice on Ferguson Lake and for the caribou migration to pass through the property. With the goal of completing at least 20,000 meters of drilling in 75 holes during the 2023 exploration season, the company plans to resume drilling in June with four rigs.
The results from the 2022 and 2023 programs will be used to update the Ferguson Lake resource at the end of this year.
Assays are pending from the 21 holes drilled during the spring 2023 program.
Over his more than 16 years of covering mining and mineral exploration, Shane has become renowned for his ability to report on the sector in a way that is technically sound enough to inform industry insiders while being easy to understand by a wider audience.
Reader Comments(0)