Gold Commissioner upholds claim to Eskay area property

Ken McKenzie, the mysterious interloper into the Eskay Creek gold camp north of Stewart, B.C., has won a partial victory in his bid to secure ownership of highly prospective claims located adjacent to and along strike from the 21 zone deposits held by Calpine Resources and Stikine Resources (TSE). A recent ruling by the Chief Gold Commissioner upheld McKenzie’s Section 35 complaint against the IKS 3 claim, one of three hotly contested claims (IKS 1-3) that were the subject of an option agreement between Prime company Adrian Resources (VSE) and Arc Resources Group.

McKenzie did not contest the IKS 2 claim, and his Section 35 complaint against the IKS 1 claim was dismissed. But McKenzie’s initial victory could be a temporary one as the dismissal of the IKS 3 claims will be appealed. Adrian had earned 100% of the IKS claims with partner Stikine holding the right to share in this interest.

To complicate matters further for both McKenzie and Adrian, Paul Dupras and Alex Briden intend to appeal a ruling cancelling their DUP 1-3 claims which preceded the IKS 1-3 claims.

Dupras and Briden terminated an agreement allowing Adrian to earn a 50% interest, a move which Adrian intends to challenge legally should Dupras and Briden ultimately prove title to all or some of the claims. Adrian is not planning to start work on the property until the various claim disputes and legal battles are resolved.

The Eskay Creek region came to prominence in 1988 with the discovery of high-grade gold by Calpine Resources, now a wholly owned subsidiary of Prime Resources Group (VSE). About 11.98% of Adrian’s current issued and outstanding shares are held by Prime Resources Group. Recent revised probable and possible reserves for the 21A and 21B deposits as calculated by Roscoe Postle and Associates total 1.55 million tons averaging 1.34 oz. gold and 36.21 oz. silver at a cutoff grade of 0.25 oz. gold per ton.

A tonnage and grade calculation by the Toronto-based consulting engineers is in progress on behalf of Adrian for the IKS 1 claim which incorporates a gap covering a portion of the 21 zone between the TOK 1-2 and TOK 3-4 claims held by Calpine and Stikine.

A number of other claims in the immediate area, many of which were optioned by Prime group companies, are also awaiting rulings by the Chief Gold Commissioner to settle Section 35 complaints. Many of these were overstaked by McKenzie on behalf of a private company called Tagish Resources.

Rumors continue to circulate as to McKenzie’s identity or his possible involvement with a major mining company, but nothing has been substantiated in this regard. About all that is currently known about McKenzie is that he is a Vancouver businessman involved in a T-shirt enterprise.

In a move to eliminate additional overstaking of established claims, the British Columbia government recently imposed a staking reserve measuring 13 x 13 km over the Eskay Creek area centred on the Eskay Creek deposits owned by Stikine and Calpine.

This reserve incorporates disputed claims held by a number of companies, including Gigi Resources (VSE), Canarc Resource (VSE) and Achilles Resources (VSE).

Three Prime group companies — Calvada Resources (VSE), Consolidated Powergem Resource (VSE) and Tamavack Resources (VSE) — jointly hold a 100% interest in certain claims located strategically to the west and to the north of the 21 zones deposits on the Eskay Creek property. All of the claims lie within the staking reserve, and six of the nine claims are subject to Section 35 complaints.

Decisions on the disputed claims are not expected until this summer because of weather conditions. The Pi, Delta and Phi claims, immediately north of the IKS 2 claims, are not subject to disputes and a drill program is planned for this summer to test for the extension of the 21 deposits stratigraphy at depth.

The prospective GNC 1-3 and Stor claims — held equally by Calpine, Stikine and Canarc — surround much of the Eskay Creek property and also fall within the staking reserve. Work will continue on the GNC claims this season, but the Stor claim is subject to a Section 35 complaint. A decision is not expected until this summer.