Shear Minerals adds 2,428 sq. km to Churchill project

Vancouver — Shear Minerals (SRM-V) and partner Northern Empire Minerals (NEM-V) have added 2,428 sq. km of federal prospecting permits and claims surrounding its Churchill diamond project, in the Keewatin district of Nunavut.

The new ground was picked up after results from a regional sampling program performed last September identified eight anomalous samples that contained kimberlite indicator minerals.

Shear is the operator of the project and holds a 51% interest. Northern Empire holds a 35% interest and Hunter Exploration, a private company, holds the remaining 14%. The project now consists of over 4,047 sq. km of ground near Rankin Inlet on Hudson’s Bay.

Until recently, the region has not been a focus for diamond exploration. Last month the partners approved a $2.5 million exploration program which will entail ground geophysics on a minimum of 30 targets, detailed till sampling and drill testing on a minimum of 15 kimberlite targets. The work program is expected to commence in February.

In other news, Shear Minerals recovered three diamonds from its XYZ property in the Northwest Territories. The diamonds were recovered from 194 kg of beach sand material from which 86.16 kg of non-magnetic material was sent for caustic fusion at the Saskatchewan Research Council in Saskatoon.

The diamonds measured 0.44 by 0.42 by 0.28 mm using a 0.212 mm sieve; 0.30 by 0.24 by 0.18 mm using a 0.15 mm sieve; and 0.28 by 0.24 by 0.18 mm using a 0.15 mm sieve.

“Finding diamonds in this beach sand is a technical success and speaks to the merit of the project, said Pamela Strand, president of Shear Minerals. “We believe the kimberlite source of the diamonds and indicator minerals is local.”

This year Shear intends undertake more sampling and conduct a program of geophysics at the XYZ property in order to move the project to a drill ready stage.

Shear is earning an 80% interest in the 101-sq.-km property from Hunter Exploration. The project claims are contiguous with the western boundary of the Ekati Diamond mine property.