Aur, Louvem settlement could renew Val d’Or activity

All has been quiet lately on the Val d’Or, Que., exploration front as litigation over the discovery of Aur Resources (TSE) and Societe Miniere Louvem (TSE) and a lack of available funding has slowed the pace of drilling there. The recently settled legal dispute between Aur and Louvem over the most significant base metal discovery in the camp’s history has distracted operator Aur from a surface infill program that hasn’t yielded any results since May.

Some of the other companies with claims in the five townships east of Val d’Or have kept their shareholders in suspense while they focus on properties outside the region.

Tandem Resources (ME) and affiliate North American Rare Metals (ME) have rights to about 40,000 acres in Val d’Or. As well, they are active in the Moss Lake area, west of Thunder Bay, Ont. Kingswood Exploration (ASE) is emphasizing exploration in Quebec’s Eastmain area while its Bourlamaque option has remained dormant.

Forced to foot the bill of an expensive and time-consuming lawsuit involving 51% owned subsidiary Louvem, St. Genevieve Resources (TSE) just plainly ran out of money.

However, now that the Aur- Louvem dispute has finally been solved, some new results are expected from Louvicourt by the end of this month. Others are also preparing to renew efforts on their own ground.

Noranda (TSE), for instance, is ready to start drilling on the Kingswood claims in Bourlamaque Twp. Tandem and North American Rare are preparing for a major program designed to test anomalies on properties in Pascalis, Senneville and Vauquelin twps. St. Genevieve, too, is about to resume exploration at the Wrightbar Mines property in Bourlamque Twp. after agreeing to borrow $19 million from Noranda.

As Aur and Louvem are completing infill drill work on a deposit containing potential reserves of 36 million tons grading 3.11% copper and 1.34% zinc, their neighbors in the camp will be watching anxiously for new results. Tandem President Stan Hawkins said he began staking ground in Val d’Or, as soon as the Aur-Louvem discovery was announced last year. Other landholders in the region are also basing their exploration strategies on the Aur-Louvem model.

The Tandem-N.A. Rare joint venture is doing ground geophysics on a number of properties in preparation for a 25,000-ft. drill program. Both companies are contributing equally to the program but Tandem affiliate Frankield Exploration (ASE) can back in for 10%.

However, having purchased 30,000 acres of Val d’Or mineral prospects from Brominco Inc., in 1981, and then expanded its influence in the camp through option agreements with Consolidated Abitibi Resources (ME), Aur is a dominant force within the camp.

Aur will expand its influence even further, if shareholders of Belmoral Mines (TSE) allow Aur to purchase a 50% stake in Belmoral’s Dumont and Ferdeber gold mines and 21,000 acres of mining properties around Val d’Or. Belmoral shareholders are scheduled to vote on the agreement Oct. 18.

Under an option agreement with Consolidated Abitibi Resources (ME), Aur can earn a 70% stake in two properties that tie on to the claims hosting Aur’s Louvicourt Twp. massive sulphide discovery. They are the Abitibi and adjacent Bevcon claims. So far, drill results have included a 19-ft. intersection averaging 1.71% copper on the Abitibi property.

About three weeks ago, Aur said it had intersected stringers of chalcopyrite at a depth of 763-798 ft., averaging 2.05% copper and 0.18 oz. silver over 35 ft. at Bevcon. Aur is drilling a hole to test the zone below the 35-ft. intersection. Drilling will resume on the Abitibi property in 1991.

Aur Vice-President Howard Stockford said his company hasn’t totally given up hopes of finding a major base metal deposit on the Lugold property that straddles the boundary separating Louvicourt from Vauquelin Twp. In 1988, a 13-ft. intersection, averaging 2.4% copper and 15.3% zinc over 29 ft. was pulled from the property. While nothing similar has been reported since, Stockford indicated his company may take another look at Lugold.

Further west, on the Connell Corner claims that tie on directly to Aur-Louvem ground, Ezekiel Exploration (VSE), under an option agreement with Aurizon Mines (TSE), is funding a $1-million exploration program. It is designed to test the western extension of the horizon hosting the Aur- Louvem discovery.

Earlier this year, Aurizon said reserves in the E zone — one of two known copper-bearing zones on the property — have increased by 165,000 tons and now stand at 740,000 tons grading 2.36% copper.

Aurizon has also been able to confirm that the pyroclastic rocks hosting the Louvem No. 4, 1 and 6 zones occur on the Connell corner claims.

Since then, however, Aurizon has granted Ezekiel an extension allowing it until June 30, 1991, to exercise its option on the property. In exchange, Aurizon, which already owns 22.9% of Ezekiel, acquired another 100,000 of the latter company’s shares.

Meanwhile, across the Aurizon boundary in Bourlamaque Twp., St. Genevieve has been waiting for the funds needed to finance deep drilling on its Wrightbar property.

As part of a deal that solves all of the litigation surrounding the Aur- Louvem discovery, Noranda Minerals, which owns 22.7% of Louvem, has agreed to lend St. Genevieve $19 million for five years.

Part of the proceeds will undoubtedly be spent on Wrightbar where St. Genevieve, while earning a 50% interest, has been looking for massive sulphides below existing copper and zinc zones. Lately a 265-ft. structure was intersected 325 ft. south of the 500,000-ton Quebec- Manitou copper zone at a vertical depth of 2,460-2,625 ft.

Having spent $800,000 already, geologist Alain Leclerc said the St. Genevieve group is looking for the points at which the known zones meet at depth. “Geochemistry on the property is very similar to the Aur-Louvem project,” she told The Northern Miner.

Kingswood and partner Noranda are about to start a downhole geophysical survey and diamond drilling on a group of claims in Bourlamaque Twp.

Kingswood can earn a 50% stake in the Bourlamaque claims by spending $1.2 million on exploration over four years. The deal requires Kingswood to spend a minimum $300,000 by November, according to President Wayne O’Connor.

Kingswood and Noranda are aiming to find deep, massive sulphide base metal deposits within the same package of mixed volcanics that hosts the past-producing East Sullivan copper mine next door.

Gold was the target of previous exploration on the Bourlamaque property and past diamond drilling tested only to a vertical depth of 500 ft. The best result reported was 6 ft. of grade 0.36 oz. gold and 2.5 ft. of 0.6% copper.

Meanwhile, the gold exploration that was in vogue before Aur came up with the big base metal find at Louvicourt last year still continues in the Val d’Or region though gold projects have garnered much less attention.

Rio Algom (TSE) recently agreed to earn a 60% stake in Aurizon’s Beacon property (west of the Ezekiel, Aurizon ground) which is known to host a small gold deposit containing 267,800 tons of grade 0.15 oz. The agreement requires Rio Algom to spend $250,000 on the property by Nov. 15.

Vauquelin Mines (ME), a 20% owned affiliate of St. Genevieve Resources, is planning to drill on either side of a gold zone intersected on the Bloc-Ouest property in Vauquelin Twp. The 38.4-ft. intersection, which averaged 0.16 oz. gold per ton, was encountered at a depth greater than 1,500-ft. below surface. The Vauquelin property is adjacent to claims hosting Cambior’s (TSE) Chimo gold mine.