Vancouver — Partners De Beers Canada Exploration, Kensington Resources (KRT-V) and Cameco (CCO-T) have completed 12 of the planned 16 holes slated for this round of drilling on the Fort a la Corne diamond project in Saskatchewan.
The aim of the latest program is to evaluate the 140, 141 and 150 kimberlite bodies. All of the latest holes were collared on the 141 kimberlite body and cut significant widths of kimberlite.
Preliminary results suggest that kimberlites 140 and 141 may form a single, large body. Based on geophysical data, they were originally thought to be separate bodies.
The results from the 3,300 metres of drilling range from 89.5 metres of kimberlite in hole 11 to an impressive 338.8 metres of kimberlite in hole 13.
The holes are being used to help pinpoint the location for a second bout of drilling, using a larger-diameter (24-inch), reverse-circulation machine. In order to recover a larger parcel of diamonds for valuation, the partners plan to collect mini-bulk samples from eight RC holes into kimberlite 141.
Earlier in the year, a 251.8-tonne bulk sample from the 141 kimberlite returned 21.06 carats of diamonds. Based on the limited results, De Beers modelled a grade of 18 carats per 100 tonnes, with a best-fit value of US$153 per carat or US$28 per tonne. The 141 body is estimated to contain 395 million tonnes of kimberlite.
Kimberlite 150 will be tested with two large-diameter RC holes. The body has a predicted grade of 16 carats per 100 tonnes and shows good potential for larger diamonds.
The 255-sq.-km Fort la Corne project lies east of Price Albert and hosts 71 confirmed kimberlites. Forty-nine of the bodies are diamondiferous and 34 have yielded stones larger than 1 mm in at least one dimension.
De Beers and Kensington hold a 42.25% stake each. Cameco and its wholly owned subsidiary, UEM, hold the remaining 15.5%.
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