Starfield ramps up drilling

Vancouver — With two rigs turning and a third slated to be added next month, the latest results tabled by Starfield Resources (SRU-V) continue to expand the West zone on the Ferguson Lake copper-nickel-cobalt-platinum-palladium property, 160 km south of Baker Lake in the Canadian territory of Nunavut.

The third hole of the current program, hole 70, intersected the sulphide horizon at 540.2 metres down-hole, returning 5.4 metres averaging 1.3% copper, 0.8% nickel, 0.09% cobalt, 1.7 grams palladium and 1.2 grams platinum per tonne. This marks the deepest mineralization hit to date at the zone.

Hole 71 was collared 120 metres to the west and hit 7.2 metres grading 0.9% copper, 0.4% nickel, 0.05% cobalt, 1.1 grams palladium and 0.3 gram platinum from 336 metres down-hole.

Testing the downdip extension of this intercept, hole 72 cut an impressive 32.8 metres grading 1% copper, 0.5% nickel, 0.06% cobalt, 1.3 grams palladium and 0.2 gram platinum from 480.5 metres down-hole. Below this intercept, at 493 metres down-hole, a 6-metre intercept returned 1.3% copper, 0.83% nickel, 0.1% cobalt, 2.1 grams palladium and 0.25 gram platinum.

In order to fund the aggressive campaign, Starfield has inked a $2.5-million financing with an Austrian group. The private placement consists of 3.8 million units priced at 65 each. A unit holds one share and one warrant exercisable at $1 for a one-year period.

The Austrian group and Starfield have started the process of co-listing the shares on the stock exchanges in Frankfurt and Berlin.

At last count, the West zone hosts an inferred resource of 28.2 million tonnes grading 0.85% copper, 0.56% nickel and 1.2 grams combined platinum-palladium. Included in this resource is a higher-grade core comprising 7.2 million tonnes grading 1.1% copper, 0.8% nickel and 2 grams combined platinum-palladium.

A 4.8-km-long geophysical conductor has traced the zone. The resource occupies only 20% of this geophysical anomaly.

The copper mineralization at West was initially discovered in the 1950s by Inco (N-T). It was followed up three decades later by a unit of Homestake Mining (HM-N). The former pegged the zone’s resource at 6.4 million tonnes grading 0.87% copper and 0.75% nickel. The latter discovered showings of platinum, palladium and cobalt mineralization in sulphide-bearing outcrops.

Manual resource estimates for the East I zone come in at 2.9 million tonnes grading 1% copper, 0.8% nickel and 1.2 grams combined platinum-palladium.

The East II zone tallies 1.3 million tonnes grading 0.9% copper, 0.8% nickel and 1.2 grams combined platinum-palladium.

This year’s program is aimed at drill-testing the mineralization at greater depths, as well as other geophysical targets.

Starfield earned a 100% interest in the 20,000-ha property by paying $75,000 in cash, issuing 4.25 million shares and spending $1.7 million on exploration.